It Started With a Dinner for One
by IheartJanto-X
Summary: AU. When Jack Harkness first sets eyes on waiter Ianto Jones, he doesn't think he's ever seen anything as gorgeous as this Welshman. Little does he know, Ianto is thinking the exact same thing.
1. Chapter 1

Jack Harkness hadn't really made a conscious decision to dine alone. He couldn't spend another evening alone in that big house, so he had decided to wander around the Bay aimlessly, needing the hustle and bustle of people to calm him down. He'd found himself outside an up-market restaurant and, realising he was hungry, boldly stepped in. He whistled appreciatively as he took in the modern decor and minimalist styling. He was seated at a table and studied the menu, practically salivating at the thought of some of the food. He purposely didn't glance at the prices, knowing full well how expensive the evening would turn out to be. But he decided he didn't care.

"_Come On, Jack"_ he thought, _"live a little!" _

He quickly decided on what he was going to order, but was still pouring over the menu when he heard a gorgeous Welsh voice at his shoulder.

"Good evening, Sir, Are you ready to order?"

Jack looked up, and gasped. There, standing before him, was without a doubt the most gorgeous Welshman he had ever seen, and he prided himself on the fact that he'd seen a fair few. The man was dressed in a suit that fit in all the right places, and the deep blue shirt brought out the impossible grey-blue colour of his eyes. His hair was perfectly styled, and his face was controlled, but still somehow had a hint of irony.

"Um...I, um..." Jack stuttered, trying to pull himself together, "Can I have the scallops, then the butternut squash risotto, please?"

The waiter nodded, smiling, "Anything else you would like, Sir?"

"_Yeah you on a platter" _Jack smiled weakly, "No, thanks, that's it"

The waiter nodded and turned away, giving Jack an amazing view of his retreating figure. Jack breathed. It had been a while since he had seen someone so effortlessly sexy. He gestured for a young waitress to come over, and she obliged.

"Yes, Sir? Did you need anything?"

He shook his head, "It's Jack, and no, thank you, but could you tell me who that is?" he nodded in the waiter's direction. The waitress smiled knowingly.

"Ah, that's Ianto, Ianto Jones" she sighed, "Gorgeous, isn't he?"

"Hell, yeah!" Jack breathed, "Is he....?"

"What, gay? I'm not sure; he tends to keep himself to himself. But I've seen him flirt with pretty much anything"

Jack laughed, "Sounds like my kinda guy"

Just as the waitress burst into a giggle, Ianto came over, a steaming plate in his hand. He raised his eyebrows at their laughter.

"Is everything alright, Sir?"

"Oh, yes, it's perfect" he grinned.

"Enjoy your meal" The waitress smiled, turning to leave.

"Don't worry, I will" he winked suggestively, looking up at Ianto, who was still standing there with the plate. Jack noticed he was hiding a grin at the banter between Jack and the waitress.

"Here you are, Sir" he put the plate in front of him, and almost immediately turned to leave, but he uncharacteristically waited until Jack had taken a bite.

"Oh my God!" Jack moaned, "This is amazing!"

"I'm glad you like it" Ianto breathed, caught off guard by how attractive he was finding the man in front of him. It was unnerving, but there was something about him that made Ianto want him fervently. He rushed away from the table before he could get too flustered, going behind the bar where the waitress was working, smirking to herself.

"His name is Jack" she said as Ianto got to the bar, "And, yes, he's bloody gorgeous!"

"Tosh!" Ianto feigned shock, "I can't believe you'd say that, he's a customer"

Tosh rolled her eyes, staring at him until he sighed dramatically.

"He is very handsome"  
Tosh giggled, "He totally likes you"

"Shut up, of course he doesn't, I'm just his waiter"

"He asked me about you, ya know"

"What did he say?"

"That's between me and him" Tosh grinned, walking away to take somebody's order. Ianto smiled after his friend before carrying on with his work.

* * *

It was three hours later, when the restaurant was closing for the night, that Tosh ran squealing up to Ianto, who cringed away from her ambush.

"Whoa, calm down" he said, "What's wrong?"

"A customer left his wallet, and guess who it was?!"

Ianto shook his head, confused.

"A certain Jack....Harkness" she beamed, checking the driving licence in the wallet, "Oh My God, you have to go give this back to him, then ask him out"

"Tosh, what are we, 12?!" Ianto rolled his eyes, "I'm not gonna 'ask him out'" he added, imitating Tosh's voice.

"Well, fine then, I'll just have to do it myself"

Ianto snatched the wallet out of her hand, unable to meet her eyes as he grabbed his coat. He could feel her triumphant gaze on him as he headed out of the restaurant. He wasn't sure what he was doing, but there was something in him that needed to see this intriguingly attractive man again. Studying the wallet as he walked, he found out more information on Jack. His full name was Jack Harkness, 34, according to his driving license, and he lived in a rather up-market part of Cardiff. What Ianto couldn't find out, however, was whether Jack was single, and he couldn't really work out why he actually cared. It wasn't as if he would ask the guy out, judging by the address, Jack Harkness wouldn't be interested in a man like him.


	2. Chapter 2

Since arriving home that night, Jack had done nothing but think about Ianto Jones. He sat alone in the house, sipping wine all by himself, wishing he was sharing the bottle with a certain gorgeous Welshman. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, and he got up from the sofa with a groan to answer it. He checked the antique clock in the hallway.

"_Who would call by at 10:45?" J_ack wondered as he unlocked the door. He pulled open the door and gasped, as there, standing at his door nervously, was one Ianto Jones.

"Hi" Ianto smiled timidly, "Sorry to disturb you, seeing as it's so late"

"You're not disturbing me at all, but is there a reason for you popping by?"

"Of course" Ianto rolled his eyes, "I'm not some weird waiter who stalks his customers"

Jack laughed, "Do you wanna come in then?"

Ianto considered, "Sure, why not?"

Jack stood aside to let Ianto in, grinning at the strangeness of the situation. 3 hours ago, this man had been nothing more than his waiter, and suddenly he was standing in his hallway, looking around hesitantly at his surroundings.

"Go through" Jack gestured towards the living room, mentally judging himself for checking out the young man's arse as he walked. They ended up settled on the sofa, their knees almost brushing together, as Jack offered Ianto a glass of wine.

"I can't stay long, Jack" he declined, before stiffening, "Is it ok if I call you Jack?"

"Of course" Jack laughed, "As long as you tell me how the hell you know my name!"

Ianto grinned, "You left your wallet in the restaurant, that's why I came to find you"

"Damn, and I thought it was that you just couldn't keep away from me"

Ianto smirked, "Yeah, that was obviously it!" he said sarcastically. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the wallet, "Anyway, here you go" he held out the wallet for Jack who reached to take it. As the wallet was handed over, their fingers brushed together, causing them both to gasp quietly.

Jack coughed uncomfortably, "So...aren't you a bit worried that you're sitting in the house of a guy you know nothing about, who you met just hours ago? For all you know, I could be a psycho-killer or something"

"I'll bloody well hope you're not!" Ianto chuckled, "But as for knowing nothing about you, that isn't strictly true. I mean, I had your wallet, I can find out a bit from that"

"Oh really?" Jack leered, "And what did you find out?"

"Just name, age, address, general things" Ianto said dismissively, "nothing that really tells you what a person is like"

"Well, it's a damn sight more than I know about you, Ianto Jones"

"You know my name, at least. Anything else you wanna know, ask away!"

Jack sighed, "Okay, let's start with your age"

"28, born August 19th 1983"

"Hmm...Family?"

"Just the one sister, you?"

"A brother, but I haven't seen him in years....long story"

"I see" Ianto said, not pressing the matter, "Actually, it's getting pretty late, I'd better be off"

"Time flies when you're having fun" Jack muttered, getting up to see Ianto out. They walked in silence to the door.

"Thanks for bringing my wallet back" Jack said as Ianto turned to leave.  
"No problem," Ianto smiled, "See you in the restaurant sometime"

"Unless..." Jack started, "I was thinking maybe, one day...dinner, a movie...?"

"Are you...asking me out on a date?" Ianto stuttered.

"Interested?"

Ianto grinned, "Yeah, I am"

Jack beamed back, "Well, I'll give you a call sometime, if you give me your number"

"Okay, I have a confession" Ianto blushed, "I slipped my number into your wallet earlier"

Jack laughed, "Well, well, Ianto Jones, you've surprised me"

"Oh, I can be very surprising" he winked, "You'll find out"

And with that, he turned on his heel and walked casually away, leaving Jack dumbstruck. Jack walked back into the house, laughing at the amazing evening he'd ended up having.


	3. Chapter 3

Jack was true to his word. It was the next day, and Ianto was in the restaurant with Tosh. They were cleaning glasses, but Ianto was fighting the urge not to throw one at the waitress.

"Come on, Yan! Gimme the details!"

"There's nothing to tell! I went there, gave him the wallet and left"

"That's crap, I can tell by your face there was more to it than that" she glared. Ianto rolled his eyes.

Suddenly, his phone rang in his pocket. He pulled it out, and went to answer it, sticking his tongue out at Tosh childishly.

"Hello?"

"Ianto?"  
"Oh, Jack, Hi"

Tosh's eyes widened with recognition, and she squealed with delight.

"What was that?" Jack asked,

"Oh nothing, just my friend being a complete idiot" he glared in her direction, but she didn't notice, seeing as she was busy jumping for joy.

"Right," Jack laughed, "Anyway, I was wondering if you were busy tomorrow night."

"Nope, free as a bird, why?"

"Well, I was wondering if you maybe wanted to have dinner, there's that new Italian opened in the Bay, if you're interested?"

"I'd love to, say, 7ish?"

"Okay, I'll pick you up"

Ianto paused, "Do you even know where I live?" he grinned.

Jack sighed, "Oh yeah, that could be a problem" he admitted.

Ianto laughed, "What if I come to yours for 7, and we can go from there?"

"Sounds like a plan" Jack chuckled, "See you tomorrow then"

"See you" Ianto agreed, hanging up, turning around to face Tosh. She was beaming at him triumphantly.

"Don't say a word" he warned.  
"I wasn't going to" Tosh giggled, turning back to the glasses. Ianto smiled to himself as he got back to the task, thinking that tomorrow couldn't come around fast enough.

* * *

Jack hung up the phone with a grin, then burst out laughing as he realised where he was. He'd been walking aimlessly around the bay as he was talking, and he had somehow ended up outside the restaurant where Ianto himself worked. In fact, he could see him through the open door, attacking the waitress playfully with a tea towel, before walking casually towards the kitchen with a grin on his face. Jack debated for a moment, before heading merrily into the restaurant.

Tosh looked up as she heard somebody enter. Her eyes widened, and she grinned at the man in front of her, who was smiling back warmly.

"Hi, I was just walking by, and I thought I'd pop in and say hello"

"Right...hello, then" Tosh giggled.  
"Hello" Jack said awkwardly, "So, um, is Ianto around by any chance?"

Tosh was just about to answer when the man in question appeared, storming out of the kitchen, engrossed in a phone-call.

"**Wrth gwrs, ca a dyddiad yfory, ond gallwch chi dod dros yn fuan"**

There was a pause, and Ianto laughed,

"**Oes, ei fod yn deniadol iawn,"** Ianto smirked to himself, before spotting Jack standing in the restaurant with Tosh, staring in his direction, awe-struck.

"**Rhiannon, rhaid I mynd, hwyl fawr" **

He hung up, walking over to Jack and Tosh. Tosh was grinning at Jack, who was staring open-mouthed at Ianto.

"Hi, Jack, I wasn't expecting to see you here" Ianto smiled.

"I wasn't planning on it, but I found myself outside here, and thought I'd pop in" said Jack, still slightly wide-eyed, "So, you speak Welsh?"

"Yep, why, turn you on?" Ianto smirked. Tosh's eyes widened at her friends sudden openness.

"Well, now you mention it..." Jack grinned back, "Anyway, I'd best be off, you must be busy"

"Sure, so I'll see you tomorrow?"  
"Yeah, see you then" Jack turned to leave, "Before I go...say something in Welsh again"

Ianto laughed**, "wyt ti'n olygus, a byddwch chi'n gwybod"**

"What does that mean?" Jack asked, shivering at the way those beautiful Welsh vowels came out of Ianto's delicious mouth.

"Oh, that's for me to know and you to wonder about" Ianto winked, "I'll see you tomorrow, Jack"

He smirked, then turned and headed back into the kitchen, leaving Jack speechless and almost painfully attracted to this gorgeous Welshman.

* * *

"**Wrth gwrs, ca a dyddiad yfory, ond gallwch chi dod dros yn fuan"- **Of course, I have a date tomorrow, but you can come over soon.

"**Oes, ei fod yn deniadol iawn" - **Yes, he is very attractive.

"**Rhiannon, rhaid I mynd, hwyl fawr" - **Rhiannon, I have to go, bye.

**"wyt ti'n olygus, a byddwch chi'n gwybod" - **You're gorgeous, and you know it


	4. Chapter 4

Friday night. Date night. Jack was pacing his living room, as he had been since 6:15 that evening. He had been dressed and ready to go for an hour, and now Ianto was due to arrive any minute.

Suddenly, the doorbell sounded, and Jack rushed to answer it, taking a deep breath before opening the door. He grinned at the sight before him. There stood Ianto, looking downright delectable in a black suit with a red shirt and black-and-red striped tie.

"Hello again" Ianto smiled.

"Hey, do you wanna come in?"

"No, I thought I'd just stand here freezing my arse off!" Ianto rolled his eyes, stepping into the house.

"Well, well, Mr Jones, aren't we sarcastic today?" Jack smirked, following Ianto into the living room,

"So, do you wanna go now, or do you want a drink first?"

"We may as well go now, they do amazing cocktails in this place"

"I thought you said you'd never been?" Jack asked, grabbing his coat and heading for the door, Ianto following behind him.  
"I haven't" Ianto confirmed, "But I know the girl who owns it, and she makes good cocktails, although they're alcoholic as hell!"

Jack laughed, "Come on, then," he grinned, leading Ianto out of the house and down the street.

They walked down towards the bay, making companionable conversation. As they reached the restaurant, they were greeted by the waitress, who turned out to also be the owner.  
"Hey, Ianto" the woman greeted him warmly  
"Hi, Lisa, how's business going?"

"Oh, brilliant, thanks, how about yours?" she grinned

"Can't complain" he shrugged, "This is Jack, by the way" he gestured to Jack who nodded politely.

"Pleasure to meet you, so, table for two, is it?"

They were shown to a table, and sat pouring over the menus.

"The way Lisa talked to you, you could've sworn you owned the bloody restaurant" Jack laughed.

Ianto just looked at him quizzically, raising his eyebrows.

"What's the restaurant called, Jack?"

"Jones'....Oh my God, you actually do own it!" Jack's eyes widened.

Ianto chuckled, "Well, it was my Dad's, but he gave it to me in his will."

"Oh, well now I feel like a total idiot" Jack blushed.

"Don't feel like an idiot" Ianto grinned, "You weren't to know"

By this time, they had chosen their meals and a waiter was ready to take their order. They sat drinking delicious cocktails that Jack was sure were very alcoholic.

"So, what did you say in Welsh yesterday?" Jack asked, "It's been bugging me"

"How long have you been living in Wales?" Ianto asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Um, about 11 years"

"And you never bothered to learn Welsh?" Ianto smirked.

"Hey, I've been busy!" Jack said defensively.

"Oh, really? Doing what, exactly?"

"Well, I joined the Army at 19, then when I got out I came here, went to Uni, got a degree in psychology and now I'm a writer, part-time"

"Bloody hell, you have been busy!" Ianto grinned, "So, never settled down or anything?"

"Never really found anyone I wanted to settle down with" Jack shrugged, "What about you?"

"I haven't found anyone quite special enough," he grinned, "Well, not yet, anyway"

Jack laughed quietly, just as their meals were brought over. They carried on with friendly conversation, and shameless flirting, throughout the dinner, and as they studied the dessert menu's Jack's thoughts turned to what would happen at the end of the date.

"So, do you live far from here, are you gonna need a taxi?"

"No, I live nearer than you do" Ianto smiled, "I have a flat overlooking the Bay"

"Nice" Jack commented,

"It is indeed" Ianto winked, "I'll have to show you sometime"

"Is that a threat or a promise?" Jack smirked.

Ianto laughed mischievously, and Jack's breath hitched at the sparkle in the young man's eyes.

* * *

After paying the bill, the pair walked out to the edge of the Bay, leaning on the railings near the Millennium Centre.

"So, it's getting pretty late, I'd best be going" Ianto finally sighed.  
"True, I need my beauty sleep" said Jack.

Ianto rolled his eyes, "Somehow, I doubt that"

The two men stood for a while, unsure of how to approach the situation.

"Goodnight then, Ianto" Jack smiled, moving to walk away.

"Oh, fuck it!" Ianto moaned, grabbing Jack forcefully by the shirt and pulling him into a ferocious kiss. Jack, surprised, took a while to respond, but then did so passionately, resting his hands on Ianto's hips. Ianto was the first to pull back, grinning at Jack's now slightly dishevelled appearance.

"We should do this again sometime" Ianto winked. Jack, still unable to control his breathing, just nodded weakly. With that, Ianto gave a parting smile, turned on his heel and strode away from Jack, towards his flat. Jack laughed at the absurdity of what had just happened, then headed home, smiling to himself at what had turned out to be without a doubt the best first date he'd ever had.

* * *

Sorry it's quite short, but it'll be continued soon :)


	5. Chapter 5

The next morning, Ianto was rudely awoken by the phone ringing. He rolled over in bed with a groan, checking the time on the clock by his bedside. 9:15am, not really that early, but still not a decent time to be woken by a shrill ringing.

"Hello?" he muttered unenthusiastically.

"How did it go?" Tosh asked excitedly, much too loudly for Ianto's taste.

"Tosh, can we have this conversation when I'm slightly more awake?"

"Aww, come on, Yan, I'm on the edge of my seat here!"

"We'll talk when you get into work at 4:30, Okay?"

"Fine!" Tosh grumbled, "See you later" she hung up, and Ianto put his head back onto his pillow with a sigh. Just as he was getting comfortable, his phone started to ring again. He rolled his eyes tiredly and answered

"Hello?"

"Did you kiss him? That's all I wanna know!" Tosh practically shrieked.

"Tosh, we can talk later" Ianto sighed, slamming the phone down. The phone almost immediately started ringing again, much to Ianto's annoyance.

"What?" he yelled down the phone.

"Ianto? Sorry, is this a bad time?"  
"Shit, Jack, sorry, I thought you were someone else" Ianto cringed, "Now's a good time, I suppose, what was it that you wanted?"

"This might sound totally weird and stalkerish, but did you maybe fancy grabbing lunch later? Just because I'll be in town anyway with work, and I thought we could maybe..."

"Lunch would be great" Ianto interrupted, "But do you wanna come to mine, because my friend is harassing me for information and if I don't go out of the house she has no chance of seeing me"

Jack laughed, "Sure, just tell me where it is and I'll be there"

Ianto gave him the address and they said their goodbyes, hanging up with identical smiles on their faces.

* * *

Jack took a deep breath as he stood outside the door of the flat he'd been directed to. He was impressed at the modern apartment building that housed Ianto's flat, and was pleased to see it was in fact looking beautifully over the Bay as Ianto had said. He rang the bell and waited for Ianto to answer, which he did within seconds.

"Hi" Ianto grinned, stepping aside to let Jack in,

"Hey, nice place you've got here" Jack commented,

"Thanks, I like it" he smiled, leading Jack through to the living room. Jack looked around the room appreciatively, his gaze stopping on an acoustic guitar that was propped up in the corner.

"Do you play?" he asked, nodding towards the guitar.

Ianto shrugged, "A little, I was in a band in college, I was the singer but I needed something to do with my hands on stage so I picked it up"

"Can you still play?"

"Where are you going with this, Jack?" Ianto asked with a smirk.

"Will you play some for me?" Jack asked hopefully.

"If you want, but I should warn you, there may be some smashed windows by the end of it"

"I'll take the risk" Jack laughed. Ianto smiled and motioned for Jack to follow as he sat crossed-legged on the floor, guitar in his lap. He strummed the strings gently to check they were in tune, and after a quick grin to Jack, he began to play.

_Everytime I think of you  
I always catch my breath  
I'm still standing here  
And your miles away  
And I wonder why you left  
And there's a storm that's raging through my frozen heart tonight_

_I hear your name in certain circles  
And it always makes me smile  
I spent my time just thinkin about you  
And its almost driving me wild_

But it's my heart that's begging down this long distance line tonight

And I ain't missin' you at all  
Since you've been gone... Away  
I ain't missin' you  
No matter what I might say....

Ianto ended the song and looked up at Jack, who was looking awestruck at what he had just heard.

"Wow" Jack breathed, "Well, you are full of surprises, Ianto Jones"  
Ianto smiled, "So you liked it, then?"  
"You're so talented!" Jack nodded, "It really makes me wanna kiss you" he added quietly.

Ianto smirked, "Well, if you really want to...I'm not gonna put up much of a fight" he winked.

Jack laughed, "Oh really?" he leaned in slightly hesitantly, raising his eyebrows as he got closer to lanto's lips. Ianto growled impatiently, roughly capturing Jack's lips in a kiss. Jack smirked against his lips before responding eagerly, moving his hands up Ianto's toned chest. Ianto wrapped his arms around Jack's neck, lying back so Jack ended up leaning over him on the floor. Jack pulled back slightly and smirked at the man below him,

"When you said lunch I didn't think this is what you had in mind"

Ianto rolled his eyes, "Shut up and kiss me"

"Yes, Sir" Jack grinned, leaning in to do just that. Ianto took control, rolling them over so he ended up straddling Jack's hips. He gently kissed along Jack's jaw line before moving to his lips, as Jack's hands made their way up Ianto's T-shirt.

"Hey, Yan, I just thought I'd pop in, I want all the gossip about your gorgeous.....OH MY GOD!"

The two men paused and glanced towards the door breathlessly, where there stood a rather shocked Tosh, her eyes wide and her jaw dropped open in surprise. Ianto coughed uncomfortably as he extracted himself from Jack's arms, standing up and adjusting his T-shirt. He held out a hand to help Jack up, which he took gratefully.

"Tosh, Hi, I wasn't expecting to see you here"

"Well, clearly" she grinned, gesturing to the two of them, who were both looking rather dishevelled. She also noticed that they hadn't let go of each other's hands, but she didn't comment.

"Yes, well, um....Toshiko Sato, meet Jack Harkness" Ianto nodded between the two.

Jack smiled and waved weakly, "Pleasure to meet you"

"You too" she grinned, "Although maybe we should've met properly for the first time when your shirt buttons are fully done up" she giggled.

Jack looked down to find that his shirt was, indeed hanging slightly open. He grinned to himself as he straightened himself up,

"Well, I best be going, leave you two to catch up" Jack said with a glance at Ianto. Tosh graciously went through to the kitchen to give them a chance to be alone.

"You don't have to go, you know" Ianto said.

"No, I'd better go, but I'll call you later, Ok?"

Ianto nodded, showing him to the door. Just as Jack turned away and stepped out, Ianto grabbed his hand and pulled him back. Jack turned, raising an eyebrow.

"Is that your way of saying goodbye, Jack?" he asked, his own eyebrows raised questioningly, a smirk on his face.

Jack laughed, "I can try again if you like"

Ianto gave him a look of assent, and Jack placed a hand behind the Welshman's neck, pulling him to a kiss. Ianto rested a hand gently on Jack's hip, willing him back into the flat. As he began to deepen the kiss, Jack pulled back, chuckling.

"Your best friend is in there, and if you keep that up I may be inclined to drag you back in there and have my wicked way with you. And, seeing as I've only known you for 4 days, I don't know if that's the best idea"

"I wouldn't complain" Ianto sighed, defeated. Jack laughed, cupping the other man's cheek lightly before stepping away.

"I'll call you later" Jack promised,

"You better!" Ianto grinned, closing the door as Jack walked away. He was still beaming as he walked into the kitchen where Tosh was waiting excitedly.

"Yan!" she squealed, "God, I forgot how gorgeous he is! So, I would ask how your date went, but it's pretty clear when I caught you at it on the living room floor!"

"We weren't 'at it'" Ianto rolled his eyes, "And he didn't spend the night, if that's what you're insinuating"

"So what happened then?"

"Nothing! The date was fantastic, to be honest, and we kissed goodbye....well, I sorta jumped him"

Tosh clapped her hands in delight, "So, how was he here today?"

"He rang, asked if I wanted to have lunch, I suggested he come over, and one thing led to another, then you walked in"

"If I hadn't walked in, do you think you would've..."

Ianto sighed, "I dunno, I mean, in the heat of the moment, maybe, but I don't want him to think I'm easy or anything"

Tosh narrowed her eyes at him, "You're really smitten with this guy, aren't you?"

Ianto blushed slightly, "Well, I suppose, maybe, I could be...."  
Tosh beamed, pulling him into a bone-crushing hug.

"You're so cute, Yan!" She squealed, "And you really do make a gorgeous couple"

"Whoa, we're getting a bit carried away here; we're not really in a relationship"

"Yet" Tosh winked, "But you will be, I can tell"

"How can you tell?"

"Because of the way you look at each other" Tosh smiled, "And because if you don't end up with him, I will physically hurt you" she added sweetly.

Ianto glared at her for all of ten seconds, before breaking into a smile and putting some coffee on. He knew Tosh was joking, but there was something, deep down, that was hoping she was right.


	6. Chapter 6

It had been a week since Jack had first set eyes on Ianto, and since then the Welshman had hardly left his thoughts. Jack was beginning to question whether this was normal behaviour, and whether Ianto was feeling the same way, or it was just him. He needed to talk to someone about this, and there was no-one better for this kind of conversation than Gwen Cooper, Jack's best friend and regular relationship counsellor. They were sitting in their favourite bar in the Bay, comparing notes on their relationships over cocktails.

"So, how're you and Rhys going?" Jack asked, taking a sip of his drink

Gwen beamed, winding a strand of her thick dark hair through her fingers,

"Great, to be honest, he's so sweet and gentle...until we get into the bedroom, then he's an animal" she winked.

Jack chuckled, "Why, Miss Cooper, I'm shocked!"

Gwen rolled her eyes, "Come on, Jack! You're worse than I am, and you know it"

Jack grinned, "I know, and you love it"

"Speaking of love, how's Ianto?" she asked

"Well..." Jack considered, "It's strange, I've known him a week, but it seems like I've known him forever, and I already feel sort of...attached to him, like I would never dream of dating anyone else right now"

"Aww, look at you, getting all monogamous" Gwen squealed happily.

Jack blushed slightly, "I know, I dunno what's wrong with me!"

"You're falling for him, Jack" she grinned, "I can't wait to meet him, after all that you've said about him"

Jack smiled, "Well, actually, he said he'd pop in, seeing as he works just around the corner, and he's gonna bring his friend, Tosh. You'll love her; she's to him what you are to me"

"What, your gorgeous best friend/life coach?" she teased.

"That's it" Jack laughed.

Suddenly Gwen's eyes widened, "Oh My God, the most gorgeous man I've ever seen, apart from you, has just walked in here" she breathed, her eyes fixed on the door. Jack turned in his seat, and had to suppress a smirk.

"You really think he's that good looking?"

"Hell yeah! He's like a god in a suit, and I bet he's pretty fit out of it too!"

"I'm sure he is" Jack grinned, as the man approached their table, a pretty Japanese woman next to him. Gwen gasped and blushed as the man came to them, nodding to Jack and sitting in the seat next to him. Jack immediately cupped the man's cheek and kissed him chastely, before turning back to Gwen and smirking.

"Gwen cooper, meet Ianto Jones"

"I...Um..." she stuttered, before recovering and holding out her hand, "Hi, pleasure to meet you"

"You too" Ianto smiled, "This is my friend, Tosh"

"Ah, yes, the famous Tosh" Gwen greeted the other woman, "I've heard a lot about you"

"I've heard a lot about you, too" Tosh grinned, as the two women launched into a conversation.

Jack turned to Ianto with a grin, "Told you they'd get on like a house on fire"

"Yeah, like some other people I know" Ianto smiled back, and Jack beamed, lightly tracing his finger over Ianto's thigh. Ianto covered Jack's hand with his own, stopping him in his tracks.  
"Something wrong, Yan?"

"Not at all" Ianto sighed, "But if you keep that up, I may have to jump you"

"I don't think I'd complain"

"No, but the rest of the bar might!

"Yeah I suppose" Jack sighed with defeat, "Damn it"

Ianto chuckled, leaning closer to whisper in Jack's ear,

"I can assure you I'll be jumping you sometime soon, I don't think I can stand it much longer"

Jack shivered with anticipation, closing his eyes and trying to control his breathing. Tosh and Gwen looked over at them with raised eyebrows. Ianto leaned back away from Jack, grinning in the girls' direction. Jack, recovering, stood up and turned to Tosh and Gwen.

"Can I get anyone a drink?"

"Sure, I'll have a G+T, please" Tosh smiled,  
"Same again for me, Jack" Gwen nodded,  
"I'll have a beer" Ianto finished, "Do you need any help?"  
"I'm sure I'll be fine" he smiled, "If I can walk straight after that" he added quietly. Ianto smirked as he watched Jack go to the bar, before turning to the girls, who both had beaming smiles on their faces.  
"What?" he asked.

"You two" Tosh grinned, "You're so cute together"

"You really do make a gorgeous couple" Gwen agreed,

"Whoa, calm down! We've only known each other a week!"

"Yeah, but you wanna get to know him a lot better"

"Well, yes, but..."

"But, what? He obviously feels the same way"

"How do you know?"

"I know everything" Gwen winked, "Especially how he feels about you"

Ianto grinned, "And?"

Gwen laughed, "Let's just say you won't be getting rid of him easily"

Ianto looked over at Jack fondly, who was leaning casually against the bar

"Why would I ever want to get rid of him?" he sighed, causing the girls to squeal excitedly,

"Aww! You're so adorable, Ianto"

"He is, isn't he?" Jack winked as he came back with a tray of drinks, "He's like a little bear"

"Bear?" Ianto asked incredulously, "Really?"

"Oh, it's a compliment, I promise" Jack smiled, ruffling Ianto's hair affectionately. Ianto scowled at him for all of 10 seconds, before breaking into a grin. Tosh and Gwen looked on with huge smiles on their faces, happy to see their best friends together. They finished their drinks while engaging in light conversation, until Ianto stood up with a sigh.

"We're gonna have to go, we have work to do"

"Can't you stay a bit longer?" Jack pouted, "Pretty please, Yan?"

"Sorry, Jack" Ianto chuckled, "I have to earn a living somehow"

"It was a pleasure to meet you both" Gwen piped up, standing to shake hands with both Ianto and Tosh. Jack sat with his arms folded, scowling at the floor like a child.

"What's wrong Jack?" asked Ianto, kneeling in front of him.

"I don't want you to go, I was having fun!"  
"Me too" Ianto smiled, "But all good things must come to an end"

"Not necessarily" said Jack, squeezing Ianto's hand. Ianto grinned at the double meaning.

"I'll ring you later, Ok?"

"Ok" Jack agreed, standing up to say goodbye. He hugged Tosh warmly before turning back to Ianto.

"Bye then, Yan" he smiled. Ianto looked at him, eyebrows raised.

Jack rolled his eyes, "Fuck it" he laughed, repeating Ianto's words from the very beginning, before pulling Ianto towards him and kissing him hard, cupping his face tenderly in his hands. As they pulled apart, Ianto smirked at Jack before turning and leaving the bar, Tosh following behind him. Gwen stared open-mouthed after them, before turning back to Jack, who was beaming.

"Wow!" she gasped, "You two are the most adorable couple I've ever seen"

Jack uncharacteristically blushed, looking down at the floor as he sat back down.

"Jack, you lucky sod! He's bloody gorgeous"

"I know" he grinned.

"So what's he like in bed?" she asked with a smirk.

"Well, we haven't actually...done it yet"

"Okay, who are you and what have you done with Jack Harkness?"

"Oi!" He laughed, "It's not that we don't want to, I mean we almost did until Tosh came in and caught us, it's just...I don't wanna come across as easy, because he's... He's special" he smiled.

"That's weird, Tosh said that's what he said about you, that he didn't want you to think he was easy"

"Really? Well, that's interesting" he grinned, inwardly breathing a sigh of relief that it wasn't just him feeling this way, and that he would someday soon be taking the next step with the gorgeous Ianto Jones.


	7. Chapter 7

"Hello?"

"Jack, hi, it's me"

"That really narrows it down, Yan"

"Yeah, well, you knew who I was didn't you?"

"True...so how are you?"

"I'm good thanks, you got plans for Friday?"

"Nope, why?"

"Well, I'm working, but if you fancy coming down to the restaurant for about 10:30, we could have the entire place to ourselves, and the chef could rustle something up for us...that is, if you want to, I mean..."

"I'd love to, Yan"

"Good...right then, I actually better be going, I shouldn't even be on the phone"

"Why, where are you?"

"...Um, well, sort of...in a freezer"

"What?"

"A big one"

"Right...Okay, well, I'll let you get back to whatever you're doing in a freezer, and I'll see you Friday"

"Okay then, Bye Jack"

"Bye, Ianto"


	8. Chapter 8

As Friday night rolled around, Jack found himself outside Ianto's restaurant, peeping nervously around the door. He grinned at the sight before him. Ianto had removed his suit jacket and loosened his tie, rolling up his shirt sleeves and creating a downright delicious look for him. Jack's eyes took in every detail of the Welshman's appearance before entering the now empty restaurant.

"Fancy seeing you here"

Ianto looked up, and grinned, "Funny that, seeing as I own the place"

Jack pouted, "Now, was there any need for your sarcasm, Mr Jones?"

"If you're gonna be anywhere near me for any length of time – which I'm hoping you will be – then you'll come to realise that sarcasm is kind of a given with me"

"Oh, I think I can cope with that" Jack smiled, walking closer to Ianto where he was leaning on the bar. Ianto grinned as Jack stood in front of him, running a hand down Ianto's arm gently. Jack raised an eyebrow questioningly, silently asking for permission.

"Something you wanted?" Ianto asked in all seriousness,

"Yes, actually" Jack grinned, "I want you to kiss me"

"Hmm...Well if you really want to" he sighed in mock annoyance, pursing his lips in a way that Jack found positively adorable.

Jack growled playfully, "Well, if you don't want to, I'm sure I can find someone who's more than willing to..."

He was cut off as Ianto pulled Jack towards him by his shirt and kissed him to within an inch of his life. Jack was startled at the Welshman's enthusiasm for a moment, before he responded eagerly. He failed to suppress a moan of protest as Ianto pulled back, much to the man's amusement.

"Happy now?" Ianto raised his eyebrows.

"Insanely" Jack breathed, causing Ianto to chuckle,

"Good, now if you don't mind I'll go check on dinner, I'm bloody starving!" he extracted himself from Jack's arms and headed for the kitchen, leaving Jack to try and control his breathing. Jack groaned to himself and put his head on the bar in front of him, frustrated at how close he had been to taking Ianto then and there against the bar. He was amazed at the effect that this man was having on him, after only knowing him for a few short weeks.

"Hope you're hungry, unless you're content with snogging my bar" Ianto grinned, putting two steaming hot plates on the table. Jack sat down opposite Ianto and they tucked in.

"Oh my God" Jack moaned, "This is amazing!"

"Glad you like it" Ianto grinned, trying to ignore the effect Jack's moans were having on him.

"Are you sure your chef doesn't mind staying behind after work?"

"Oh, I'm sure he doesn't" Ianto winked, "You could ask him if you want, he's looking right at you"

"You made this?" Jack asked, "Is there anything you can't do?"

"Hmm...I'll let you know when I find something" he chuckled.

* * *

The evening carried on perfectly, as they talked until around midnight, when Ianto finally suggested they should leave. They walked aimlessly around the bay until they ended up outside Ianto's apartment building.

"Do you wanna come up for a while? I've been told I make great coffee" Ianto smiled.

Jack chuckled, "Okay then"

They took the lift in comfortable silence. As they reached the flat, Jack was suddenly nervous. He realised that Ianto was too special for him to rush into anything, and that this night had been too perfect for them to do anything else.

"Yan, before we go in, I have to say...when I said I wanted to come up for coffee, that's all I meant, I mean, not that I don't want to, but..."

"Jack, calm down, I just meant coffee too"

"Really?"

"Yeah, I don't wanna...rush anything"

"Good, well, glad we got that cleared up" Jack muttered, following Ianto into the flat. Ianto got the coffee on as Jack settled himself on the sofa.

"How do you like it, Jack?" Ianto yelled, causing Jack's eyes to widen considerably.

"I...what?"

Ianto poked his head out of the kitchen with a raised eyebrow.

"How do you like your coffee?" he smirked.

Jack sighed with relief, "Oh, right, um...black, one sugar please"

Ianto laughed as he came in with the drinks,

"You have a dirty mind" he said as he handed Jack his coffee,

"Yeah, so I'm told" Jack grinned, "But you aren't exactly innocent, Ianto Jones"

"Oh, you have no idea" Ianto winked, causing Ianto to choke on his first sip of coffee.

He tried again, taking a small sip. He closed his eyes blissfully,

"Wow" he moaned, "Yan, your coffee is bloody orgasmic!"

Ianto laughed, "Don't get too excited, it's only coffee"

"I'm not so sure; it's like heaven in a cup"

Ianto rolled his eyes, "God, you're cheesy sometimes!" he stated, sitting next to jack on the sofa, moving so that his leg brushed Jack's ever so slightly.

"I know I am, and you know you enjoy it" Jack pouted.

"Yeah, I do actually" he laughed, "I just enjoy being with you in all honesty"

"Now who's being cheesy?" Jack teased, nudging Ianto's shoulder, which in turn moved him even closer to the Welshman. Ianto glared at him playfully, nudging him back.

"Hey! I was being all deep and meaningful!"

Jack laughed, "Okay, you want deep and meaningful? Ianto Jones, I don't know where this is going, or what we're doing here, but I know how I feel about you. I literally cannot get you out of my head, and I wouldn't change that for the world"

Ianto looked Jack in the eye, and as they met, Jack realised that Ianto was feeling exactly the same. Ianto beamed at Jack, capturing his lips in a tender kiss. As they pulled back, Ianto sighed sadly,

"What's wrong?" Jack asked, stroking Ianto's cheek softly.

"Its 2:30 in the morning, which means you'll wanna go home" he sighed, looking very much like a disappointed child, a sight that Jack found downright gorgeous.

"I don't wanna go, but I can't exactly stay here all night"

"Why not? You could sleep here, and then I could make you some more of my orgasmic coffee in the morning"

"Okay then" Jack chuckled, "As long as you don't mind me taking up your sofa for the night"

"Jack, we're not animals, you can take the bed without me jumping you"

"You sure you don't mind?"

"Have you seen the size of my bed? I have room for about 5 people in it"

"I'm intrigued" Jack grinned,

"Well, if you wanna go now..." Ianto stood up and gestured for Jack to follow him towards the bedroom. He opened the bedroom door to reveal a rather large room, which contained the biggest bed Jack had ever seen. His eyes widened in delight.

"Wow!" he yelled happily, leaping onto the bed like a child. He landed on his back, messing up the sheets in hysterical laughter, before turning to Ianto guiltily, who was watching on with a raised eyebrow.

"Sorry" he mumbled,

"You're so adorable sometimes" Ianto grinned, joining Jack on the bed. Jack smiled at him, sitting up so their faces were almost touching. Ianto leant in to press a chaste kiss to his lips. Jack sighed into the kiss, reaching up to cup Ianto's cheek, as Ianto wrapped his arms around Jack's waist. The kiss became more passionate as Jack leaned back onto the bed, pulling Ianto with him so he was almost on top of him. As Jack's hands went around Ianto's neck and he crushed his body to the Welshman, Ianto pulled back breathlessly.

"Jack" he gasped, "We can't...we need to stop, or I won't be able to"

"I know, sorry, I dunno what came over me"

"I know I would_ like _to" Ianto muttered, sitting up and trying to control his breathing. Jack smirked at Ianto's innuendo before sitting up next to him. Ianto smiled at him,

"Right, we better find you something to sleep in"

"You don't have to, I could sleep in underwear"

"Oh, yeah, that's sensible!" Ianto rolled his eyes, "That's not gonna make me wanna...you know... at all!"

"Good point" Jack grinned, "So I take it you won't be sleeping in underwear?" he asked hopefully,

"Nope" Ianto laughed, going to the wardrobe and getting two pairs of pyjama bottoms, he threw a pair to Jack, before heading into the en-suite.

"Spoilsport!" Jack yelled, earning a mischievous laugh from Ianto. They both changed and Ianto emerged from the bathroom.

"Ready?" he yawned, getting into bed before waiting for an answer. Jack smiled, getting into the other side of the bed, making sure he wasn't touching Ianto. Ianto noticed this and smiled gratefully,

"Thanks, Jack, I don't think I can deal with you touching me right now, I'm still a bit..."

"I get it," Jack smiled, "Goodnight, Yan"

"Night, Jack" he smiled back, squeezing his hand before turning away from him and settling down to sleep.

Around half an hour later, Jack was woken as an arm draped across his waist. He looked down to see Ianto curled up next to him, his head on his chest. As Jack shifted slightly, Ianto snuggled closer, sighing contentedly in his sleep. Jack smiled, wrapping an arm around the sleeping man and closing his eyes, chuckling inwardly at the hypocrisy of Ianto's actions, seeing as he'd told Jack not to touch him in the first place. His arm tightened around the Welshman as he drifted off to sleep, and the two men feel asleep in each other's arms for the first time, but for what would definitely not be the last.


	9. Chapter 9

As Ianto woke the next morning, it took a moment for him to take in his surroundings. He opened his eyes and found himself practically on top of Jack, their faces just inches apart. He gasped at the shock of it and jumped back, not realising how close he was to the edge of the bed. He fell to the floor with a bump, groaning as his back hit the wooden floor. Jack, hearing the commotion, woke up and sat up in bed, peeping over the edge of the bed and rubbing his eyes.

"Yan? What are you doing?" Jack asked groggily, "why are you on the floor?"

"Not sure, I think you surprised me"

"Well, I know I look like crap in the mornings, but jumping out of bed may be a bit extreme"

Ianto laughed tiredly, "Yeah, maybe"

He sighed, pulling himself off the floor and back into the bed next to Jack.

"Morning" he grinned at Jack, who smiled back.

"And you don't, by the way" Ianto noted, "Look like crap, I mean"

"Really?"

"Really" Ianto grinned, "You look...well, just as gorgeous as usual"

"Thank you, you don't look too bad yourself" Jack grinned, leaning in to kiss Ianto chastely.

"Right, we better get up, I'll have to get going eventually"

"Yeah, I suppose" Ianto sighed sadly, causing Jack to smile fondly and stroke his cheek,

"Fancy coming over mine tomorrow, I owe you after last night, what with the dinner and everything"

"Okay, I'd love to" Ianto smiled, getting out of bed and pulling Jack with him.

"Coffee?" he asked, heading to the kitchen.

"Do you even have to ask?" Jack laughed, "You know how I like it" he winked as Ianto raised an eyebrow, smirking.

"Black, one sugar, right?"

Jack nodded, and Ianto went to make the coffee. As he returned with two steaming cups, the two sat on the sofa chatting about nothing in particular, until Jack really ought to get going.

"Thanks for letting me stay, Yan"

"No problem, I'm glad you did" he smiled, showing him to the door,

"I'm glad too, I had a great time" Jack smiled, "So, you're coming over for dinner tomorrow?"

"Yep, if you're sure you don't mind"

"Why would I mind?" Jack asked, wrapping his arms around Ianto's waist, "I think we've established I love being with you"

"Yeah we have" Ianto murmured, leaning in to kiss Jack tenderly, moving his hands up to around Jack's neck. As they pulled apart, Jack sighed contentedly before heading out of the door leaving Ianto with a beaming smile identical to his own.

* * *

I know it's really short, but that's cos I'm working on the next one, which is rather long, that consists of Ianto's visit to Jack' house...and some other stuff I think you'll like ;)


	10. Chapter 10

When Ianto found himself outside Jack's house for the second time, he took in the surroundings more thoroughly. He was impressed by the large Victorian style house, wondering how one man would need so much space. He didn't dwell on this, though, as he was too anxious to actually get in there and see Jack, even though it had only been a day since they had been together. He went up the stone steps to the red front door, ringing the bell and waiting for Jack to answer. As he did so, Jack was met with a beaming smile.

"Well, somebody's happy today" Jack grinned, letting the man in,

"Is that a bad thing?" Ianto asked, smirking,

"Not at all, just wondering who or what could've made you so happy"

"I'm looking at him" Ianto smiled, kissing the tip of Jack's nose to make his point. Jack beamed at him, leaning in to kiss him on the lips. Ianto smiled against his lips before responding. The kiss only lasted a moment before Jack pulled back,

"I better go check on dinner, you make yourself comfortable"

Ianto nodded as Jack headed to the kitchen. He sat on the comfortable leather sofa to wait for Jack, taking in the decor of the house. He was impressed by the warm, elegant layout, and the details were timeless, but hinted at the past, as if Jack was actually a lot older than his years. Ianto smiled as Jack came back in, carrying a bottle of wine and two glasses.

"Can I tempt you?" he asked, indicating the bottle,

"You always do" Ianto deadpanned, patting the seat beside him. Jack sat down and handed Ianto a glass of wine,

"So, how was work?" Jack asked, resting his arm across the back of the sofa,

"Good, my waiter came back, so I don't have to work the tables anymore"

"What, you don't do that usually?"

"No, one of my waiters had an unfortunate accident, so he's been off for 6 weeks, and we had no extra staff to cover him"

"So, if wasn't for this guy's unfortunate incident, we would never have met?"

"I suppose we wouldn't have" Ianto grinned, "Thank God for blenders"

"Blenders? What the hell happened to this guy?"

"He got drunk one night and apparently he had always wondered what happened if you put hair in a blender...so he tried it out with his own hair"

"Oh my God" Jack spluttered with laughter,

"Oh, that's not the worst bit" Ianto smirked, "He didn't use the hair on his head"

Jack burst into hysterical laughter, and soon Ianto was joining in. They laughed until there was a high pitched beeping coming from the kitchen.

"Shit!" Jack yelled, darting into the kitchen to stop the fire alarm. Luckily, he managed to rescue the dinner, which he served quickly. The two men sat eating and mingling for the next hour, before they ended up of the sofa with yet another bottle of wine.

"Jack, that was amazing" Ianto smiled,

"Glad you liked it" Jack replied, "So, what do you wanna do now? I would offer you coffee, but I can't exactly compete with yours"

"Hmm, I've been told yours tastes like muddy water" Ianto grinned,

"Hey!" Jack hit Ianto playfully with a sofa cushion. Ianto raised an eyebrow,

"Are you really suggesting a pillow fight? Because I'm pretty sure I'd beat you"

"Oh, really?" Jack grinned, hitting him again. Ianto picked up the pillow behind him and met Jack's attack, both men laughing hysterically. However large Jack's sofa was, it wasn't enough to take the two men's pillow fight, as Jack slipped onto the floor, dragging Ianto with him. They were giggling like idiots as Ianto ended up lying on top of Jack, their noses brushing as they were so close. Their laughter was cut off as they realised how close they were. Their lips brushed together slightly, causing Ianto's breathing to hitch.

"I should go" he breathed,

"Yeah, you should" Jack nodded, running his hand down Ianto's body to rest on his hip. Suddenly, Ianto pulled Jack to him with a moan, kissing him passionately. The kiss became more and more heated as Jack responded eagerly, doing thoroughly wicked things with his tongue as he ran his hands through Ianto's hair. Ianto moaned, reaching to undo Jack's shirt. As he succeeded in doing so and ran his fingers down his chest, Jack groaned and dragged Ianto to his feet, still holding onto him tightly,

"Do you wanna...?" he asked breathlessly

"Oh, Hell yes" Ianto gasped, trying to pull himself even closer to Jack. Jack grinned, leading the other man upstairs to the master bedroom. As Jack pushed the door open Ianto grabbed him again, kissing him more tenderly than before. Jack manoeuvred them so they were sitting on the side of his bed, never breaking the kiss. As they sat down, Jack pulled back, taking hold of Ianto's hand,

"Yan, are you sure you wanna do this?"

Ianto rolled his eyes, "No, I'm gonna go home right now! Of course I do, Jack"

"That's ok then" Jack smiled, pushing Ianto gently back onto the bed. Ianto grinned up at him, wrapping his arms around the man's neck to pull him down. Their lips met softly at first before it became more passionate as Jack shed his shirt, moving to undo the buttons on Ianto's. As his shirt hit the floor, Ianto smirked at Jack while swiftly removing his belt. Jack chuckled mischievously at the thought of the delicious things he would be doing with his Welshman, and as Ianto's hand travelled southwards along the waistband of Jack's trousers, he knew that he wasn't about to be disappointed.

* * *

Sometime later, when they lay breathlessly in each other's arms, both beaming at the other,

"Wow" Jack breathed

"I know" Ianto grinned,

"I mean, like, wow!"

"I know" Ianto chuckled, "That was amazing"

"That it was" Jack smiled down at the Welshman, running a hand through his hair fondly.

"I suppose I'd better move, then" Ianto sighed,

"Why's that" Jack asked, "You can stay if you want, I'm certainly in no hurry to get rid of you"

Ianto grinned, leaning up to kiss Jack sweetly. Jack responded eagerly, quickly making Ianto more breathless.

"Jack" he gasped, "we can't, we've just spent the last I dunno how long..."

"2 hours and 37 minutes" Jack beamed, holding up a stopwatch from the bedside table triumphantly. Ianto's eyes widened,

"When the hell did you press that?"

"When you were doing that amazing thing with your tongue that I'm pretty sure you should be arrested for"

"So arrest me" he leered, as Jack chuckled and pressed a kiss to the younger man's forehead,

"I'll arrest you tomorrow, I'm dead beat" Jack admitted,

"Spoilsport" Ianto pouted, before breaking into a smile and laying his head onto Jack's chest. Jack kissed his lover quickly before snuggling down to sleep, smiling to himself as he slipped into unconsciousness, his dreams replaying the last 2 hours and 37 minutes.

* * *

The stopwatch will be playing a part in later chapters, if you're interested. :P

xxxxxxxxxxxx


	11. Chapter 11

Jack woke up the next morning to the sound of his phone ringing. He picked it up trying not to disturb Ianto, who was sleeping soundly across his chest.

"Hello?" he murmured

"Hey there, sexy, I was thinking of you and decided to give you a call"

"John, leave me alone, I've moved on!"

"Don't be silly, we're amazing together, you can't deny that"

"I'm happy, don't you get that?" Jack almost yelled, "I don't wanna be with you, whatever we once had is over"

The raised voices were causing Ianto to stir. He lifted his head off Jack's chest, rubbing his eyes,

"Jack?" he murmured sleepily, as Jack smiled down at him, cupping his cheek

"Who the hell is that?" John yelled down the phone.

"That is none of your business, John" Jack yelled back, "We're over, and we have been for months, now leave me the hell alone!"

He slammed the phone down, trying to calm down as Ianto looked at him almost fearfully.

"Are you ok?" he asked timidly, reaching up to stroke Jack's cheek

"I'm fine" Jack assured him, leaning to kiss Ianto tenderly

"Who was that?" Ianto asked as they parted,

"John, my ex" Jack sighed, "We broke up a few months ago, and he won't leave me alone"

"Was it serious?"

"Almost a year, but it was never gonna work, me and him"

"I'm guessing he didn't take it very well"

"No, he's been harassing me ever since"

"Well, I suppose I don't blame him" Ianto murmured, "Anyone that you broke up with would probably be pretty devastated"

Jack smiled fondly at the younger man, "Well, that's nothing _you'll_ need to worry about, Ianto Jones"

Ianto grinned at him, "That's good to know; I don't wanna turn into a harasser"

"Oh, you can harass me anytime you want" Jack leered, kissing Ianto's neck, causing the other man to moan softly. As Ianto rolled over to end up on top of Jack, running his hands through Jack's hair as they kissed passionately, all thoughts of Jack's stalker left their minds. Little did they know John would be making quite an appearance in their lives very soon...

* * *

I know it's short, but I'm working on so much right now it's insane.


	12. Chapter 12

Ianto thought nothing of Jack's stalkerish phone call until a week later. He was working in the restaurant, busy doing paperwork in the room off the main bar, when Tosh came running in,

"Ianto, there's a man asking for you, a customer"

"Why, is there a problem with the food, the service, what?"

"No, nothing like that, he says he's a friend of a friend, and that he wants to speak with you in private"

"Okay, well, send him in, I suppose" Ianto told her nervously. She nodded and went out, returning a few minutes later with a man. He was handsome, with a kind of roguish charm in his eyes, and Ianto was sure he had never seen him before in his life. As Tosh left the two men alone, the stranger turned to Ianto with a devilish grin,

"Well, well, Ianto Jones" he leered,

"I'm sorry, have we met?"

"Oh, no, but I know quite a bit about you"

"You said you were a friend of a friend..."

"Ah, yes, I'm sure you're aware of a Captain Jack Harkness?" he laughed harshly, "Well, you should be, seeing as you were in his bed just a week ago, unless you've had so many fuck-buddies since then you can't remember"

"Hey, I'm not some cheap hooker!" Ianto yelled, "And what about Jack?"

"Well, he can't be after anything serious, because he's still in love with me, so you're obviously just a part-time shag"

"Are you John?" Ianto asked, stung at the man's words,

"Yeah, how do you know? Does Jack talk about me?" he grinned, "I knew it, he loves me, and not you"

"John, I'm sorry that you and Jack didn't work out, but he's moved on now, and so should you"

"What do you know? You mean nothing to him, nothing!" John yelled, running at Ianto and pinning him against the wall by his throat.

"What the hell..?" Ianto choked, trying to prise the raging man from his throat, "Let me...go"

John laughed menacingly as the young Welshman's struggles became weaker and his breathing became more laboured. John let him go and Ianto fell to the floor, unconscious. He walked casually out of the restaurant, calling Jack as he did so.

"John, leave me the hell alone!" Jack yelled down the phone,

"Well, that's no way to talk to me! I'd have thought you'd be happy to know what I've done to your pretty little Welshman"

"Ianto? What have you done to him?" Jack instantly became angry, "I swear, if you've hurt him, I'll..."

"But don't you see? Now he's out of the way, we can be together"

"John, I don't wanna be with you!" he cried, close to tears, "I wanna be with him"

"No you don't, you don't know your own mind, he's poisoned you!"

John burst into joyful laughter as a scream was heard in the restaurant behind him, and an ambulance pulled up.

"Oh, Jack, these paramedics are gorgeous" Jack giggled,

Jack hung up the phone and ran out of the house, desperate to get to Ianto and make sure he was okay. As he ran, he got a call from Tosh, which drove him to a stop, fearing the worst,

"Tosh, is he ok?"

"He's in hospital, Jack, unconscious" Jack could hear the worry in her voice, "I dunno what happened, I just walked in and found him on the floor!"

"Tosh, calm down, he's gonna be fine" Jack assured her, although he needed some assurance himself.

"I know he is, it's just, I sent that man in there, and now he's hurt Ianto"

"It's not your fault, it's mine" Jack sighed sadly, "That man is my ex, and he went after Ianto to try and get me back"

"God, are you ok?"

"I will be when Ianto is" said Jack, "I need to make sure he's ok, that's all that matters"

* * *

Jack was running into the hospital within 10 minutes, crashing into the information desk in panic.

"Jones...Ianto Jones" he breathed,

The receptionist quickly found out Ianto's room number, and he was running again. He sped to a stop outside the room as a doctor stepped out.

"Is he ok?" Jack grabbed the doctor by the arms anxiously,

"Calm down, sir" The doctor said, "He's fine; we only brought him in to check there was no severe damage to his larynx"

"So he's gonna be ok?"

"Yes, he's a bit shaken up, understandably, but he's got no permanent damage" The doctor smiled, "Go in and see him of you want"

Jack peeped his head around the door nervously, "Yan?"

"Jack" Ianto said croakily, "What are you doing here? You better not have been worrying about me!"

"Of course I was!" Jack was at his side in seconds, "Ianto, I'm so sorry"

"For what?"

"For what happened to you"

"Jack, it was hardly your fault!"

"Of course it was! John wanted to get you out of the way so I'd go back to him, and it's probably worked"

"What, you want to go back with him?" Ianto asked sadly,

"No, I'd never go back to him, but you're gonna wanna get as far away from me as you can"

Ianto gasped, "Jack, I'm not going anywhere, I like where this is going, and I'm not gonna let this mess it up"

Jack smiled in relief, "Well, I'm glad, because I kinda like having you around"

"I like being around" Ianto grinned, "Now, shall we get out of here?"

"Are you sure you're ok?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine" he stood up, rubbing his throat as he did so. He muttered something in Welsh which sounded rather unsavoury,

"I'm guessing that wasn't very polite" Jack chuckled,

"If you'd learned Welsh you'd know exactly how polite it was" Ianto smirked back, heading towards the door, holding a hand out to Jack as he did so. Jack took it gratefully, and they walked out of the hospital, the relief that Ianto was ok obvious in Jack's beaming smile.


	13. Chapter 13

Jack insisted on taking Ianto home after his 'ordeal', as he liked to call it. Ianto didn't really put up much of a fight; he wasn't going to pass up time with Jack, who he was pretty sure he was falling for more every day.

"Are you sure you're ok, Yan?" Jack asked as they sat together on the sofa,

"Jack, I'm fine, really" Ianto sighed, "A bit shaken up, I suppose, but physically I'm fine"

"I can't believe he would do that to you" Jack said angrily, "I mean, you've done nothing"

"Except you" Ianto pointed out

"Well, yeah, but he can't get angry about me moving on, surely" Jack sighed, "And what makes me more angry is that this happened just after you slept with me, so now it's put you off, understandably"

Ianto's eyes widened, "Is that what you think? Jack, what happened today changes nothing about how I feel about you, and it certainly doesn't put me off sleeping with you!"

"Really?"

"Of course not! Last week was the first time, and definitely won't be the last"

Jack grinned, "I'm glad, I don't think I could take not doing it again now we've done it once"

"Oh, am I that good then?" Ianto winked

"Hell yeah!" Jack laughed, "If you knew how many cold showers I've had to have just thinking about it..."

"Speaking of showers, I could do with one"

"Sure, you want me to leave?"

Ianto's eyes suddenly widened with fear and he clutched at Jack's arm tightly,

"Please, stay" he whispered, "I don't wanna be alone tonight"

"It's ok, no-one's gonna hurt you" Jack said comfortingly, pulling the Welshman into a hug. He sighed, realising Ianto had been affected more than he cared to admit.

"Thank you" Ianto sighed in relief, pressing a soft kiss to Jack's neck and wrapping his arms around him.

"Right, go on, hop in the shower, and I'll make us a drink"

"Oh bloody hell, please not coffee!" Ianto gasped in horror,

"I wouldn't dare" Jack grinned, "Go on, shower, and feel free to sing"

"Hey, I don't sing in the shower"

"Well, you're no fun" Jack teased,

"You won't be saying that later" Ianto smirked, heading to the bathroom. Jack laughed to himself as he went to the kitchen to make drinks. He eventually decided on camomile tea, which he knew would be calming after a traumatic day. He had the full cups in his hand, and took a sip if his own just as Ianto emerged from the shower.

"Bloody Hell!" he yelled, spitting tea all over the kitchen floor.

"What?" Ianto asked, confused at the other man's outburst.

"What do you think?" Jack gestured to Ianto, who stood at the doorway in nothing but a towel. Droplets of water were running down his chest in a way that made Jack want to lick them off, and his cheeks held a faint blush of colour from the heat of the shower. All in all, it was taking all of Jack's willpower not to jump him there and then.

"You've seen me naked before, Jack" Ianto pointed out,

"Yeah, but not...wet and naked" Jack's eyes raked over the sight before him, and he licked his lips seductively.

"Right...well, while you put your eyes back in, I'm going to get dressed" he rolled his eyes, walking towards his bedroom. Knowing Jack would still be staring, he waited until he was just outside his bedroom door before dropping the towel. He bit back a grin as he heard Jack's breath catch in his throat. He walked into the bedroom to dress, only to be shocked as he felt Jack's arms around his waist and his breath on his neck.

"God, the things you do to me, Ianto Jones" he whispered, peppering kisses up the side of Ianto's neck. Ianto moaned appreciatively, turning in Jack's arms and leaning in to kiss him. He moved his arms up to run through Jack's hair as they deepened the kiss. As they pulled back, Jack smiled down at the Welshman,

"You're sure you haven't been put off?" he asked, teasing Ianto with his fingers even as he spoke,

"I'm sure" Ianto laughed, "Are you really gonna stop if I tell you to?"

"Of course, if you wanted me too" Jack said sincerely, his words mixing with a moan as Ianto ran his hands along the waistband of Jack's jeans, occasionally letting his fingers dip below the material onto the skin concealed beneath.

"Luckily for you, I have no intention of stopping" Ianto smirked, moving his hands up to work on Jack's shirt. AS the shirt hit the floor, Jack manoeuvred them to the bed, pushing Ianto down and leaning over him. Ianto chuckled mischievously, flipping them so he was straddling Jack's hips. Jack gasped in surprise, and Ianto took full advantage, kissing the other man heatedly. Just as he started to undo Jack's belt buckle, a shrill ringing interrupted them.

"Fuck" Jack groaned in frustration,

"Unfortunately not" Ianto deadpanned, getting up to answer the phone. Jack got up with him, resting his head on the other man's shoulder from behind as he spoke into the phone.

"Hello?"

"Ianto, hi"

"Tosh, what do you want?" he sighed, causing Jack to chuckle and begin kissing his neck sweetly.

"Well, that's a nice way to greet me! I was only ringing to ask if you wanted to come out tomorrow night, there's a crowd of us going"

"Who's going?" he asked, becoming breathless as Jack's kisses gradually got lower down his body.

"Me, Gwen, her boyfriend Rhys, you and Jack, hopefully, Rhys' friend...Owen, I think, and I think maybe your sister"

"Right...well, I, ah" he bit back a moan as Jack brushed his inner thigh with his teeth, "Tosh, can I get back to you, I'm a bit...busy"

"Is Jack there?" Tosh laughed, "Don't tell me, he's trying to get you into bed"

"He's actually quite successful in getting me into bed" Ianto grinned, much to Jack's amusement,

"You slept with him and didn't tell me?" Tosh gasped, "I'm shocked at you!"

"I promise I'll tell you everything tomorrow" he laughed, "But right now, I'd quite like to get back to...what I was doing before"

"I want details!" Tosh insisted, "And I expect them tomorrow, bye Yan"

"Bye, Tosh"

As he hung up, Jack grabbed his hand and dragged him back to the bedroom, a huge grin on his face, and all thoughts of their get-together were thrown from their heads as Jack successfully got Ianto into bed for the second time.


	14. Chapter 14

"Jack, come on, we'll be late!"

"It's good to be fashionably late, Ianto"

"God, you're so gay" Ianto rolled his eyes

"I think we've established that" Jack pouted, emerging from the bathroom fully dressed and hair perfectly styled, "Do I look ok?"

"You look fine, so we can go now?" Ianto sighed, grabbing his coat.

"Fine? We can't go if all I look is fine!" Jack said theatrically, picking up his jacket even as he spoke,

Ianto huffed, "Jack, you look gorgeous, as always"

"Do I look shaggable?" he leered, brushing his lips against Ianto's neck,

"You're completely shaggable, Jack, but if we don't go now, we'll be late, and if you make us late, I will be resisting this shaggable-ness indefinitely"

Jack looked genuinely disappointed for a moment, before breaking into a grin and leading Ianto out of the house towards Cardiff Bay. They had arranged to meet the group at 7:30 at what was apparently Gwen's favourite bar, although any bar that served a good Daiquiri was a winner in Gwen's book. They walked hand in hand to the bar, making light hearted conversation all the way. Just as they reached the bar, Ianto dropped Jack's hand, suddenly going quiet and looking at his feet.

"Yan?" Jack was confused at the young man's sudden change,

"My sister's in there" he sighed,

"And?"

"She's never met you before" he pointed out

"Are you nervous?" Jack asked, wrapping his arms around Ianto's waist,

"A little" Ianto admitted, resting his head on Jack's shoulder,

"I'm sure it'll be fine" Jack smiled, "If she's anything like you, we'll get on like a house on fire"

Ianto smiled at him gratefully as they walked into the bar, immediately spotting Gwen, Tosh and the others. They went over and greeted their friends.

"Took your time" Tosh teased, hugging both Jack and Ianto,

"With Jack, you have to expect him half an hour later than you tell him" Gwen nudged Jack playfully as he pouted. Ianto smiled as he realised his sister had already arrived, moving to hug her,

"Long time no see, Ianto" Rhiannon laughed, "How are you?"  
"I'm good, thanks" he answered, "There's someone I'd like you to meet"

Rhiannon smiled as Ianto grabbed Jack by the hand and pulled him towards her,

"Rhi, this is Jack" he smiled nervously, "Jack, this is my sister, Rhiannon"

Jack grinned warmly at her, "It's a pleasure to meet you" he said, "Can I say, you can totally tell your Ianto's sister"

"I hope that's a compliment" Rhiannon winked,  
"Oh, it is, don't you worry" Jack chuckled,

Rhiannon turned suddenly to her brother, "Ianto, yn iawn i chi, mae e'n olygus"

"Sorry, what?" Jack laughed,

"Learn Welsh!" Ianto and Rhiannon spoke simultaneously, before the group burst out laughing, as Jack pouted incredulously,

"Oh come on, don't gang up on me!" Jack sighed, "Not that many people speak Welsh"

"I do" Gwen piped up,

"Me too" admitted her boyfriend, Rhys,

"Me and Ianto do, obviously"

"Even I do" Tosh giggled, much to Jack's surprise,

"Well, thanks for that, guys!" he glared, before bursting into laughter with the others, As they settled on a nearby table and ordered drinks, Jack and Ianto took the time to check out the rest of their company, those they had never met before.

Rhys, Gwen's boyfriend, was a typical Welshman, very beer and rugby orientated, but one of the nicest men Ianto had met in a while. He suited Gwen perfectly, as he balanced out her liveliness with a down-to-earth character.

Rhys had brought Dr. Owen Harper in the hope that he would find a nice girl on the night out. He hadn't been the same since the loss of his fiancé Katie 2 years ago, and had thrown himself into his work at Cardiff Heath hospital.

As their drinks arrived, they split off into separate conversations. Jack was being slightly interrogated by Ianto's sister, as Ianto himself got to know Rhys and Gwen more. Tosh seemed to be getting to know Owen rather well. They were openly flirting, and Ianto grinned to see his best friend finally finding someone she really clicked with.

"Yan?" Jack turned to his boyfriend, "Want another drink?"

"Sure, I'll come with you" he smiled, getting up to go to the bar.

As they reached the bar and ordered their drinks, Ianto pulled Jack into a hug, giving him a light kiss on the cheek.

"What was that for?" Jack asked, smiling,

"Thank you" Ianto beamed back, "For being so nice with my sister"

"It's hard not to be, she's lovely" Jack laughed, "And I knew it would make you happy"

Ianto smiled at him, linking their hands as the barman placed their drinks on a tray.

"Yan, I kinda need my hand back to carry this" Jack chuckled,

Ianto raised an eyebrow, smirking, "No you don't"

With that, he picked it up smoothly with one hand, carrying it waiter-style over to the table, never letting go of Jack's hand.

"Ianto Jones, you never cease to amaze me" Jack laughed,

"I do try" Ianto winked, taking his seat again. Jack sat next to him, placing a hand on Ianto's thigh and teasing him lightly with his fingertips. Ianto's breathing became ragged, much to Jack's amusement, and Jack showed no signs of letting up. In fact, his fingers were inching closer and closer to where Ianto wanted him most, and all the while Jack was engaged in conversation with Rhys.

"Ianto, are you ok?" Tosh asked, "You look a little flushed"

"I'm fine" Ianto said tightly, "I'm just gonna go to the bathroom"

As he headed to the bathroom, he texted Jack frantically, telling him to follow. Jack grinned to himself as he read the text, excusing himself and doing what he was asked. As he walked through the door, he gasped as he found himself pinned up against said door. Ianto had him held against the door so their lips were just inches apart.

"You have no idea what you're doing to me" Ianto breathed, "But you're gonna find out"

With that, Ianto claimed Jack's lips roughly, grinning into the kiss as Jack responded instantly with a moan. They kissed passionately, Ianto's hands running through Jack's hair as Jack's held him tightly around the waist. As the kiss got more and more heated, Jack forced himself to pull away.

"Yan" he gasped, "Do you really wanna do this in here? Because if we keep going, I won't be able to stop myself"

"Don't stop yourself" Ianto breathed, "Just go with it"

Jack pulled Ianto back towards him, crushing the man's lips against his own with a gasp of pleasure. They held each other as close as humanly possible as they kissed heatedly, and even then it didn't seem quite close enough...

* * *

Meanwhile, out in the bar, the group were speculating over what they could be doing that was taking so long in there.

"Maybe they're arguing or something" Rhys suggested,

"Oh, please!" Gwen laughed, "They're having sex"

"In a public bathroom? They wouldn't" Tosh insisted,

"Oh, they would" Gwen smirked, "They can barely keep their hands off each other"  
"Aww, they're so sweet, aren't they?" Rhiannon beamed,

"Yes, we are" Jack smirked as he and Ianto returned to the table. The rest of them struggled to contain their laughter as they noticed how ruffled the two men looked. Jack's hair was sticking up at odd angles and Ianto's shirt was untidily untucked from his trousers.

"Been having fun, boys?" Owen winked, causing Tosh to giggle behind her hand.

"Yes, thanks" Ianto deadpanned, "I just couldn't get over how good the bathrooms are in this place"

"Yeah, I may fill in one of those compliment cards" Jack grinned, "I was thoroughly impressed with the sturdiness of the bathroom doors"

Ianto elbowed Jack and glared as the group burst into laughter. Jack and Ianto retook their places at the table, the conversation immediately turning to their antics in the bathroom.

"So, you honestly did it in there?" Tosh asked,

"Hey I'm not one to kiss and tell" Jack winked, causing both Ianto and Gwen to raise an eyebrow incredulously,

"Of course you're not" Gwen laughed, "That's why you've described to me in detail every encounter you've had with Ianto so far"

Ianto turned to Jack in amusement as the other man blushed, nervously covering his mouth with his hand.

"Sorry Yan" he muttered, causing the other man to laugh softly and take Jack's hands.

"It's ok" he grinned, "It's nice to know that I'm worth talking about"

Jack smiled back at him, "You're worth so much more than that, Ianto" he breathed, placing a hand behind Ianto's neck and pulling him into a kiss. Ianto responded with a sigh, moving his hands up to cup Jack's face lovingly.

"Aww" the girls sighed simultaneously, as Rhys and Owen rolled their eyes. Jack and Ianto pulled back, resting their foreheads against each other, oblivious to their audience. As they pulled apart and faced the group again, Jack smirked at the identical looks of something that was almost wonder on the faces of Gwen, Tosh and Rhiannon. Owen and Rhys looked vaguely amused by this, but were secretly thrilled at their new friends' obvious happiness together.

"Anyway" Rhys piped up, "It's getting quite late, shouldn't we be going?"  
"Yeah, we should" Gwen nodded, "It was lovely to get together"  
"Yeah, we'll have to do it again sometime" Jack smiled, moving to say goodbye to everyone. Once everyone had said goodbye, they went their separate ways, with Jack heading to Ianto's flat for the night.

"Well, that was certainly fun" Ianto commented as they walked,

"Yeah" Jack agreed, "The bar wasn't bad, either" he winked

Ianto rolled his eyes, "Yeah, well, count yourself lucky, it's not very often I have sex in a bathroom"

"Damn it" Jack laughed, "Are you saying you've done it before, Mr. Jones?"

"No, but that's not the first public place I've done it in"

"I'm intrigued"

"That conversation shall be saved for another night" Ianto smiled, "Right now, I can think of much better things we could be doing..."

* * *

**Ianto, yn iawn i chi, mae e'n olygus - Ianto, you were right, he is gorgeous**


	15. Chapter 15

When Ianto woke in Jack's arms the next morning, he sighed with contentment. He stared at the ceiling, trying to remember a time when he'd been so relaxed with someone so early on, relaxed enough to let them in completely. So far, he was coming up with nothing. He turned over so his chest was pressed against Jack's side, idly running his hands through the sleeping man's hair. As he did so, he glanced at the clock on his bedside table, then sat up abruptly as he realised it was gone 11 o'clock.

"Shit!" he yelled, causing Jack to stir,

"Is that language necessary at this time of the morning?" he moaned, burying his head into the pillow,

"Jack, it's nearly afternoon!"

Jack lifted his head and looked at the clock, before slamming his head into the pillow once again,

"Shit" he spoke into the pillow,

"Exactly" Ianto laughed, "Now, come on, up with you"

"Oh, you know me, I have no problem getting things up" he winked, getting out of bed,

"Good point" Ianto seemed lost in thought, re-living the events of last night, before coming back and looking into Jack's highly amused face,

"Sorry" he muttered, causing Jack to chuckle softly.

"Morning Yan" he smiled, cupping Ianto's cheek,

"Morning" Ianto replied, leaning in to kiss the other man softly. They got out of bed and walked hand in hand to the kitchen, Jack itching with excitement for Ianto to make some of his coffee,

"Jack, you need to calm down, it's only coffee" Ianto pointed out

Jack gasped theatrically, "How can you say that? It's basically an orgasm in a cup"

"Lovely description, Jack"

"I'm serious" he grinned, "Every time I taste it, I just wanna grab you and..."

He was cut off as Ianto pushed him up against the kitchen cupboards and kissed him hard. Jack moaned as Ianto ran his hands down Jack's chest before ending up at the waistband of his boxers. Just as his hand dipped inside the boxers, he quickly removed it and stepped away from Jack, smirking.

"Yan...what?" Jack asked breathlessly,

"That's all you're getting, because I have to make a phone call" he winked, and then walked into the living room to the phone.

"Bastard" Jack muttered at Ianto's retreating figure,

"You love it really" Ianto laughed. A grin spread across Jack's face as he thought up a way to get revenge on his teasing Welshman, and he followed him into the living room. By this time, Ianto had dialled the number, waiting for Tosh to pick up.

"Hello?" she said groggily on the other end of the phone,

"Bloody Hell, Tosh, how much did you drink last night?" Ianto laughed,

"Shut up, Yan" she moaned,

"Anyway, I was wondering if you..." he stopped as he heard somebody in the background of Tosh's flat,

"Hey, Tosh, fancy some breakfast?"

"Who's that?" Ianto asked, confused, "Is that Owen?" he suddenly recognised the voice,

"Um...yeah, he just..." she stuttered, struggling to come up with an excuse,

"Oh My God!" Ianto gasped, "You slept with Owen!"

"I...might've" she said weakly,

"Right, you are meeting me in the restaurant at 4:00, and we are gonna have a little chat!"

"I should say, you still owe me a detailed conversation about you and Jack"

"Fine, we'll compare notes later; I'll let you get back to your...friend"

"And I'll let you get back to yours" Tosh laughed, "Bye"

As Ianto hung up, he filled Jack in on Tosh's activities.

"Ooh, Tosh, you little minx" Jack laughed, "Didn't think she had it in her"

"She's full of surprises" Ianto smirked,

"Hmm, reminds me of someone else I know" Jack grinned, wrapping his arms around Ianto's waist to prove a point, Ianto smiled up at him, leaning in to kiss him softly. When their lips brushed gently, Jack immediately pulled back with a grin. Ianto raised an eyebrow quizzically,

"What's going on?"

"Ah, my revenge for your little kitchen teasing" he chuckled,

"SO, what, you're not gonna kiss me?" Ianto gasped,

"Nope"

"Ever?"

"Well, for as long as I think it's healthy"

"Healthy?"

"It's probably bad for my health to not kiss you for two long, I might combust or something"

Ianto sighed disappointedly, "I'm not sure how long this is gonna last before I jump you"

"Well, it's your own fault!" Jack pouted, heading to the bedroom to dress. Ianto glared at his back for a moment before following him into the bedroom, getting ready to go to work and have a rather interesting conversation with his best friend.

* * *

When Toshiko arrived at Jones' restaurant that afternoon, she was unsurprised to find Ianto sitting at one of the tables, two cups of steaming hot coffee in front of him. He was grinning up at her in a way that made her slightly nervous.

"Why, hello there, you saucy minx" Ianto winked,

"minx?" Tosh snorted incredulously

"That's what Jack's calling you" Ianto shrugged, "Now sit down, I want details"

"So do I!"

"Me first" Ianto insisted with a wry smile, "How the hell did it happen?"

Tosh blushed happily, "Well, we live in the same area, so he suggested we share a taxi, then I invited him up for a cup of coffee, we got talking, one thing led to another and..." she giggled almost childishly.

Ianto smiled, "so, are you gonna see him again?"

"Actually, he's asked me out Friday night" she grinned, "And I have that night off anyway, right?"

"Yeah, that's fine"

"SO, come on!" Tosh, "How did it happen for you and Jack?"

"The first time, or the number of times since?" Ianto winked,

"The FIRST time!" Tosh rolled her eyes, "Idiot"

Ianto chuckled, "It was the night I had dinner at his. We kinda had a pillow fight, which led to us practically going at it on the living room floor"

Tosh giggled, "SO, your first time with him was on the living room floor?"

"No, we moved into the bedroom eventually"

"So...how was he?"

Ianto sighed, "Innovative"

"Really?"

"Bordering on the avant-garde"

"Wow"

"Oh yeah" Ianto seemed lost in thought for a moment, before blinking a few times and focusing on Tosh's amused grin.

"Anyway...yeah"

"You're really falling for him, aren't you?" she laughed,

"Yeah, it's insane" Ianto admitted, "When I'm with him I'm like a lovesick teenager, an when I'm not with him I think about him constantly anyway"

Tosh beamed at her friend, "You're so cute, Yan!"

"Shut up" he muttered childishly, blushing and looking down at the table. Impulsively, Tosh got up and pulled Ianto into a hug.

"I'm so happy for you" she sighed, "Jack's lovely, and I think he could be The One"

"I think he could be" Ianto breathed, "Tosh, I think I might love him"

"Is that a bad thing?" Tosh raised an eyebrow,

"Well, he can't possibly feel the same way so soon"

"Oh, you'd be surprised"

"What?"

"Well, I know it hasn't been long, but there's obviously some deep feelings there" Tosh reasoned, "And I wouldn't be surprised if he told you he loved you too"

"Well, I won't have to worry about it for a while. I'm not exactly gonna tell him"

"Why not?"

Ianto sighed, "Oh, I just don't have the confidence"

Tosh rolled her eyes, pulling away from Ianto and checking the clock. They realised they should actually get to work, so Tosh began to lay the tables for opening while Ianto got the accounts sorted. Sometime later, just as the first customers started to arrive, Tosh broke into a grin as she recognised two people walking into the restaurant. She quickly went into the office to tell Ianto.

"Ah, Tosh, how's it going out there?"

"Fine, yeah, looks like it'll be busy tonight" Tosh smirked, turning to leave,

"Oh, and there's two people you may recognise out there" she added,

"Who?" Ianto asked warily

"Rhiannon and Cerys Jones"

"Fuck" Ianto mouthed, "I'm staying in here until they leave"

"Well I'm not sure if that's the best idea, you might be needed out there" Tosh smirked,

"Why?"

"Um...Rhiannon kinda called Jack and asked him to meet them for dinner"

"Shit!" Ianto yelled, "So my boyfriend's about to meet my mother?"

"Looks like it"

Ianto groaned. This was gonna be a long and potentially painful night...


	16. Chapter 16

Ianto took a deep breath before steeping out into the restaurant, where his mother spotted him immediately and waved him over. He smiled tightly at her and headed to the table where Rhiannon and his mother were sat.

"Ah, Ianto, we were wondering when you'd pop over" Rhiannon smiled, "And we just can't wait to meet Jack again"

"I am going to kill you" he muttered so his mother couldn't hear. Rhiannon laughed mischievously,

"Mam, you'll love him, he's very nice...and very gorgeous" she chuckled,

Ianto glared at her, "Well, yes, but he's not just a pretty face"

"That's nice to know" said a voice behind him, and he spun round to see Jack standing there, smirking. Ianto sighed with relief and immediately pulled him into a hug. Jack chuckled, leaning to whisper in the Welshman's ear,

"Calm down, it's gonna be fine"

Ianto smiled thankfully at him before letting him go and turning back to his family, who were grinning up at them.

"So, um...Mam, this is Jack" he said weakly,

"I gathered" Cerys laughed, standing to greet Jack properly, "Nice to finally meet you"

"Likewise" Jack beamed, "I've already had the pleasure of meeting your daughter"

Rhiannon giggled, "Oh, I think the pleasure was all mine"

"Okay, if you're done flirting with my boyfriend, shall I get you some drinks?" Ianto asked irritably

"Aww, honey, are you jealous?" Jack said sweetly, wrapping an arm around Ianto's shoulders

"No" he muttered childishly, leaning into Jack unconsciously as he spoke. Jack pressed a soft kiss to Ianto's forehead before leaning in to whisper,

"There's no one but you, Ianto, I promise"

"I never doubted it" Ianto replied with a grin, kissing Jack chastely, then running off to get drinks. Jack stared after him fondly before joining his boyfriend's family. As soon as he sat down, he was met with beaming smiles and questions.

"So, Jack, tell us about yourself" Rhiannon smiled,

"What do you wanna know?"

"Well, where are you from, originally, I'm guessing you're not Welsh"

"That I'm not" Jack laughed, "I'm from Illinois, but I moved here when I joined the army"

"Ooh, I soldier" Rhiannon winked, "Gotta love a man in uniform"

Jack chuckled while Cerys glared disapprovingly,

"Anyway, what do you do now, Jack?" she asked,

"I'm a writer, but I dabble in all sorts of things really, I did modelling a few years ago, I sing occasionally, all sorts"

"Wow, you're handsome and talented then" Cerys laughed, making Jack blush slightly.

At this point, Ianto returned with drinks for them, eyeing his sister warily. He set the drinks on the table and turned to leave, before a hand on his arm stopped him. He looked down to see his mother looking up at him,

"Aren't you gonna join us?"

"I have to work, Mam" Ianto pointed out.

"Well, we're not busy; I can hold the fort for a little while" Tosh said as she walked past.

"Okay, I suppose I could sit down for a bit" Ianto grabbed the chair in between Jack and Rhiannon. As soon as he was sat, Jack reached for his hand under the table, squeezing it comfortingly. Ianto smiled at him thankfully, before turning to his mother, who was about to bombard him with questions.

"So, how long have you two been together?"

"Hmm, about two and a half months, I suppose" Ianto answered, turning to Jack for conformation, who nodded, smiling.

"And when were you planning on coming to see me?" she asked irritably,

"Um...well, I hadn't really...I'm..." Ianto struggled to come up with an answer, so Jack hastily stepped in,

"Well, he had to make sure I was respectable enough first" he grinned, "He doesn't seem the type to bring any old person to meet his family"

"He isn't, you're one of a select few" Rhiannon laughed, earning her a sharp glare from Ianto.

"I'm glad he thinks I'm worth it, then"

"Hey" Ianto turned to him, "You're worth it, and so much more"

Jack beamed at him gratefully, stroking his cheek gently and running his hand lower to rest on Ianto's thigh. Ianto's breath hitched slightly, and he gently but firmly reached down to remove his hand. Jack chuckled quietly to himself, remembering what had happened the last time he'd touched Ianto like that in public.

The conversation carried on in pretty much the same fashion, with Ianto getting grilled for information, and Jack being praised at every opportunity, until the restaurant started to get rather busy around 8:00.

"I suppose I better get back to work, I can't leave Tosh to do it all herself"

"That's okay, we really should be going anyway" Cerys smiled, standing up to say goodbye,

"Jack, can I have a quick word?" she said, taking him to one side. Jack looked at her nervously as she began to speak.

"Jack, I really like you, and I can tell Ianto's really smitten" she smiled, "I just need to know you're gonna look after him, because I can't let him be hurt again, not after what happened with Lisa"

"What happened with Lisa?" Jack asked, confused,

Cerys looked uncomfortable, "It's not really my business, but I just need to know you're not gonna hurt him like that"

"I'd never hurt him, I couldn't" Jack sighed, "To be honest, I'm pretty sure I'm falling in love with him already, and that doesn't happen to me that often"

"Exactly what I needed to hear" she laughed, "I can tell you really care about him and the feelings definitely mutual"

Jack grinned, "I certainly hope so"

They re-joined Ianto and Rhiannon, the former looking at Jack inquisitively. Jack smiled warmly and shook his head, silently telling Ianto there was nothing to worry about. Ianto walked over to Jack and took his hand, turning to say goodbye to his family.

"Jack, it was lovely to meet you" Cerys smiled, "Ianto, keep in touch"

"We will" Ianto beamed, "Bye, Mam, Rhiannon"

As the two women left with smiles on their faces, Ianto rested his head on Jack's shoulder in relief. Jack chuckled, kissing his hair softly.

"I better leave, Yan, you're getting busy" Jack pointed out

"Yeah, I suppose" he sighed disappointedly, "but I kinda wanna talk to you later"

"Okay, well, do you wanna come back to mine when you finish work?"

"Would you mind?"

"Of course I wouldn't mind" Jack laughed, "I'd love you to come"

"Well, I'm sure that can be arranged later" Ianto winked,

"Ianto Jones, are you being dirty?"

"Me? Never!"

Jack chuckled, pulling Ianto into a mind blowing kiss before leaving. Ianto took a few deep breaths before getting to work, rolling his eyes at Tosh's sly smile. The restaurant gradually quietened down enough that Tosh could handle things on her own, so she told Ianto to go and leave her to close up, so he could go 'fondle his gorgeous boyfriend'. Needless to say, he didn't need much persuasion.


	17. Chapter 17

Ianto arrived at Jack's front door at around 10:30, and he was surprised to find Jack opening the door before he even rang the doorbell.

"Somebody's eager" Ianto laughed as he stepped past Jack into the house, only to be grabbed around the waist and pinned against the door he'd just walked through.

"Oh, you have no idea" Jack breathed, kissing up Ianto's jaw line before ending up at his lips. Ianto responded with a moan, his hands burying in Jack's hair as he kissed him in a way that made it difficult to remember his own name.

"Jack" he gasped as they parted for air, "What's got into you?"

Jack stepped back to let Ianto extract himself from the door, before wrapping his arms back around Ianto's waist and burying his face the Welshman's neck.

"I have no idea" he sighed, "I've just missed you"

"You saw me 2 hours ago" Ianto pointed out, "Not that I'm complaining, mind"

"I know that, I just...can't keep my hands off you I suppose" Jack winked, running his hand along the waistband of Ianto's trousers and raising an eyebrow to prove his point.

Ianto laughed, "Before we get into any of that, I wanna talk to you"

Jack scowled childishly for a few seconds, "But, later on, can we...?"

"If you're good" Ianto smirked, kissing Jack on the tip of his nose and heading into the living room. Jack growled playfully before following him, settling next to him on the sofa.

"SO, what do you wanna talk about?" he asked, draping his arm across the back of the sofa.

"What did my Mam say to you earlier?"

"She just wanted to know I wasn't gonna hurt you" Jack smiled, "And I assured her I have no intention of doing so" he let his arm fall off the sofa and wrap casually around Jack's shoulders. Ianto leaned back into the touch, smiling contentedly. Jack smiled down at him before frowning, "She did say something else though" he said, "She told me that she couldn't see you hurt again after Lisa"

Ianto stiffened in Jack's grasp, turning his head away so he didn't have to look Jack in the eye. Noticing Ianto's discomfort, Jack placed a hand under Ianto's chin, gently lifting the Welshman's gaze to meet his own,

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Jack asked, "Cos I'm guessing something happened with her"

Ianto sighed, "3 years ago, Lisa was my girlfriend"

"But, I thought you were..."

"I am, that's what caused it all" Ianto ran a hand through his hair, "We'd been together for almost a year when I told her I was bisexual. I hadn't even told my family yet, but I finally felt confident enough to tell people. It wasn't that I didn't love her, or that I didn't find her attractive, I just felt that I wanted her to know me, all of me. So I told her, and she completely freaked out"

"Did she break up with you?"

"I wish it was that simple. She accused me of lying to her, cheating on her, all kinds of stuff. She got really hysterical, rang my Mam, of all people, and ended up outing me to my entire family. They were understandably shocked, and a lot of them refused to speak to me for months and months. Lisa eventually calmed down and tried to accept me for who I was, but there was nothing left between us to keep us together, and I was too hurt and ashamed to wanna be with her anyway. Luckily, my sister was there for me, and I got through it, but I never felt confident enough to have a relationship. Sure, I had flings, meaningless sex with both men and women, but I never let anyone in...until now"

Jack took Ianto's hands in his own and kissed each palm lightly in comfort.

"I can't believe someone could be so against you being who you are" Jack breathed, "I mean, whether you like men or women, you're still one of the most beautiful, honest, amazing people I've ever met, and your sexuality doesn't affect that"

"What did I ever do to deserve you?" Ianto murmured, squeezing Jack's hand in thanks.

"What are you talking about? I don't deserve you, and I'm counting my blessings for every day I get to be with you"

Ianto smiled at him, his eyes wet with tears. He pulled Jack towards him and kissed him tenderly, pouring all his emotions into the kiss. Jack cupped Ianto's cheeks in his hands as he kissed back, smiling into the kiss as Ianto's hands wound into his hair. They pulled back, resting their foreheads together and looking deep into each other's eyes.

"God, how did this happen?" Jack breathed, almost too low for Ianto to hear.

"What?" Ianto asked, stroking Jack's cheek with the back of his hand.

Jack closed his eyes at the touch, "nothing, it doesn't matter" he whispered, pulling Ianto to his feet and enveloping him in a hug. They stayed in their embrace for what felt like forever, until Jack whispered in Ianto's ear,

"Come with me, Ianto" He took Ianto by the hand and led him upstairs to the bedroom. Jack smiled as they reached bedroom, undoing his shirt and stripping down to his underwear, motioning for Ianto to do the same. Ianto did as he was asked, before leaning in to kiss Jack passionately. Jack responded for a few minutes, but as Ianto's hands began to dip into his boxers, he gently pushed the man back. Ianto raised an eyebrow questioningly,

"Not tonight" Jack smiled,

"But earlier you were all...you know" Ianto frowned,

"I know, but now I just wanna hold you, just be with you"

Ianto nodded, letting Jack pull him onto the bed. They got settled on top of the covers for a while, sitting with their backs against the headboard and talking comfortably. Every now and then, Jack would reach out and stroke down Ianto's arm or squeeze his hand, just because he could. Ianto smiled at him sweetly, looking deep into Jack's wonderfully blue eyes.

"ydych yn aruthro" Ianto breathed as he gazed at Jack, who smiled lovingly back at him

"What does that mean?" Jack asked, running his hand across Ianto's hip.

"Learn Welsh, Jack" Ianto chuckled quietly,

Jack laughed, "dwi'n caru dy"

"What?" Ianto spluttered, much to Jack's amusement,

"Dwi'n caru dy, cariad" Jack repeated, stroking Ianto's cheek.

"You know what that means?" Ianto asked, not quite believing what he was hearing,

"Yes, I have a pretty good idea" Jack grinned, "I love you, Ianto"

"You do?" he gasped, ecstatic,

"I would've thought it'd be obvious" Jack sighed, "I understand if you don't feel the same, I mean, we haven't been together all that long, I just know how I feel about you"

"I love you too"

"Really?" Jack beamed,

"Really" Ianto laughed, "I've actually been trying to muster up the confidence to tell you"

Jack smiled fondly, leaning in to kiss Ianto chastely. Ianto raised an eyebrow as they seperated, pulling Jack back towards him so they were just inches apart.

"I've just told you I love you and that's all I get?" he asked incredulously,

"Hey, I said it first!" Jack pouted, "Don't push it, mister"

"Oh, so you're saying you wouldn't want me to kiss you into the middle of next week, and doing that thing you once told me I'd be arrested for" Ianto smirked, "Well, that's fine then"

With that, he pulled away from Jack and turned over, closing his eyes and pretending to go to sleep. Jack groaned, pulling Ianto so he was flat on his back before straddling his hips. Ianto looked up at him, grinning,

"Changed your mind, have you?" he asked innocently,

"Shut up and kiss me"

"Yes sir" Ianto pulled Jack down into a heart-stopping kiss, holding the man as tight as humanly possible. As Jack's hands started to make their way down Ianto's bare chest, Ianto smiled at the wondrous night he'd ended up having. He loved the truly amazing man that was currently on top of him, and by some insane miracle, Jack loved him back. He'd honestly never been happier, and this thought continued well into the night, and invaded his dreams as he fell asleep in Jack's warm safe arms yet again.


	18. Chapter 18

Just realised I didnt put Welsh translations on the last chapter, so here they are -

Ydych yn aruthro - You're amazing

Dwi'n caru dy - I love you (just so you know, there are a few ways to say I love you, and none of the ones I've read on are wrong - Trust me, I do honestly speak Welsh lol)

* * *

Jack was woken the next morning by his mobile vibrating on the bedside cabinet. He sighed and rubbed his eyes with his free hand to wake himself up, before reaching over to read the text. He didn't recognise the number, but as soon as he read it he knew exactly who it was from,

**Jacky boy, today is the day**

**Say goodbye to your little Welshman**

Jack's eyes widened in fear, his arm instinctively tightening around Ianto's sleeping form beside him. Ianto, sensing the tension, woke up slowly, turning in Jack's grasp so he was draped across his chest.

"Jack, what's wrong?" he asked wearily. Jack shook his head mutely, still keeping a firm grip around Ianto's waist. Ianto stroked Jack's cheek comfortingly, seeing the fear in his eyes,

"What's wrong, cariad?"

Jack silently held up the phone for Ianto to read the text. Ianto paled visibly, turning to Jack, who was clearly terrified,

"He wouldn't...he's surely not that sadistic"

"Yan, if he wants something, he'll do anything to get it, even if it means hurting people"

"He won't hurt me, Jack"

"I know he won't!" Jack yelled, "I'm not letting you out my sight"

"You can't be with me every minute of every day" Ianto sighed, "I've got today off, but I'm gonna have to go to work tomorrow"

"Will you stay with me today?" Jack asked, tears in his eyes, "I can't think about you getting hurt"

"It's ok, I'm not gonna get hurt, but if it'll make you feel better, I can stay"

"Thank you" Jack sighed in relief, leaning back onto the pillows and closing his eyes. Ianto smirked as an idea hit him. He silently dipped his head under the covers and kissed his way down Jack's body. Jack's eyes widened and he gasped at the Welshman's actions. Just as Jack was on the edge, Ianto made his way back up to Jack's lips, leaning in to kiss him passionately. Jack turned his head away and sighed. Ianto pulled back disappointedly,

"What now?"

"I was just thinking about your mother" Jack sighed. Ianto's eyes widened, and Jack gasped as he realised what he'd just said.

"Shit, Yan, I didn't mean it like that!" Jack chuckled slightly, causing Ianto to sigh with relief, "It's just, I promised her I'd never hurt you"

"Jack, you're hurting me by panicking like this" Ianto groaned, "I'll admit it, I'm scared shitless about what he can do, after what happened last time, but I can't have you worrying about me all the time, it's just making me more terrified"

"Ianto, I'm gonna worry about you, I love you and want you safe" Jack sighed, "I'm sorry if I'm panicked, I just can't bear to even think about you getting hurt"

"Okay, I know I'd feel the same about you if it was the other way around" Ianto confessed, "But we've got nothing to worry about today, I'm gonna spend the whole day with you, and we're gonna go out for breakfast, because I'm starving and I can't be arsed to cook"

Jack chuckled, "Okay then, but that means we'll have to get dressed"

"Hmm...well, maybe we'll go out for lunch, seeing as that could take us a while"

Ianto winked at Jack as he out of bed, naked, and stretched slowly, knowing exactly what it would do to Jack.

"Jack, can I use your shower?" he asked innocently, turning to face Jack, who sat in bed with a look of complete lust. Jack nodded mutely, causing Ianto smirk at him, before turning on his heel and heading to bathroom. Just as he stepped into the shower and turned on the water, he felt breath on his neck. He quickly turned to find himself face to face with Jack, who immediately grabbed Ianto by the waist and pinned up against the wall of the shower. Ianto groaned as his back hit the tiles, which turned into a moan of pleasure as Jack kissed him eagerly. He unconsciously wrapped his legs around Jack's waist, much to the other mans amusement.

"Wow" Jack gasped, "Not exactly what I usually do in the shower"

"Me neither" Ianto agreed, "Although the water's having a great effect on you"

Jack chuckled, "You can talk, you're gorgeous"

"I would say flattery gets you nowhere, but you're exactly where I want you to be anyway"

Jack grinned at him, before pulling him into a tender kiss. As he pulled back, he noticed Ianto was shaking.

"What's wrong?" he asked, concerned,

"The waters stopped running, and I'm bloody freezing" Ianto stuttered, crushing himself against Jack's body for extra warmth. Jack chuckled, grabbing a towel and wrapping Ianto up in it. Ianto sighed happily, snuggling into the warm material.

"You're so adorable" Jack smiled, enveloping Ianto, still wrapped in the towel, in his arms. Ianto smiled, relaxing into the embrace.

"Shall we get dressed, so we can go get some lunch?" Ianto asked, lifting his head from Jack's chest. Jack nodded, leading him back into the bedroom. They dressed quickly and headed out, walking towards the Bay.

* * *

But they didn't get further than Jack's street when they ran into a certain someone leaning casually against a garden wall. Jack's hand tightened around Ianto's so much that it was almost painful, and Ianto would've pulled away if he wasn't so nervous himself.

"Ah, Jack, I knew I'd run into you eventually" John beamed, "And you have your eye-candy with you, well, isn't this convenient"

"What do you want, John?" Jack asked tightly,

"You" he said simply, "Oh, and you out the way, Ianto Jones" he added with a wink.

"Well, bad luck, I don't plan on coming back to you anytime soon, and as for Ianto, he's not going anywhere, I want him in my life, and he's with me as long as he wants to be"

Ianto looked up, "I wanna be with you forever" he whispered,

"Then you will be" Jack answered with a smile, before turning back to John, who was chuckling maliciously.

"As touching as this is, you're lying to him, Jack, and you know it!" he smirked, "You're never gonna be as happy with him as you were with me"

"I couldn't be happier now, with him" Jack snarled, dropping Ianto's hand and stepping towards John threateningly, "And if you don't leave us alone, you'll be sorry"

"Ooh, fighting talk!" John smirked, circling Jack slightly so he ended up closer to Ianto than Jack. Suddenly, he was hit with a brilliant idea. Noticing there was a car speeding towards them, he span around and pushed Ianto full force into the road.

"Whoops!" he giggled as Jack watched in horror. He spotted the car, and ran to push Ianto out of its path. But there was no way he could be quick enough. All he could do was watch as the love his life was thrown over the top of the car and slammed into the tarmac with a sickening crunch...


	19. Chapter 19

Jack paced fearfully outside the hospital room, desperately waiting for news on Ianto. If the paramedics had been a few minutes later, there would've been no way to save him. And now Ianto was being treated, but was still unconscious. Suddenly, a doctor stepped out of the room and towards Jack, who was getting almost hysterical.

"How is he? Is he gonna be ok?" he gasped, "Please tell me he's gonna be ok!"

"He's actually incredibly lucky" the doctor spoke calmly and politely, "He's got 3 broken ribs, a fractured fibula and collarbone, but surprisingly, no internal bleeding"

"Is he conscious?"

"Not yet, we need to do a scan to check for brain damage, so we're keeping him unconscious until we can rule that out"

Jack took a deep breath, running a hand through his hair,

"When can I see him?"

"When he comes back from his scan, he should be waking up, so you can see him then"

"Thank you so much, Doctor"

"I'm just doing my job" he answered with a smile, heading back in to Ianto's room.

It was 20 minutes before he emerged again, with the news that Ianto was just waking up. Jack sighed, gathering himself before stepping into the room. Ianto was lying in the hospital bed, looking understandably pale. His face had almost no injuries, expect a small scar on his right cheek. His eyes fluttered open as the door opened,

"Jack?" he croaked,

Jack was at his side in seconds, holding Ianto's one hand in two of his own,

"Ianto, I'm so sorry" he sighed, tears flowing down his cheeks, "I'm so, so sorry"

"Not your fault" Ianto looked deep into Jack's eyes, "There was nothing you could do"

"Of course it's my fault, John's hurting you because it hurts me, _I'm_ hurting you by just being near you!"

"What are you saying, Jack?"

"I love you too much to see you hurt, Yan, I can't be responsible for your pain"

"Are you...leaving me?" Ianto asked, his eyes wet with tears,

"I'm trying to stop you getting hurt"

"Your leaving is hurting me!" he sobbed, "Jack, please"

"Ianto, as long as John's out there, he'll be looking for ways to get me to leave you and be with him, and all them will involve hurting you" Jack said tearfully, "So the best way is for me to stay away from you"

"Are you gonna go back to him?"

"Never, I'm in love with you, Yan, and always will be"

"So be with me!"

Jack placed a soft kiss on Ianto's forehead and turned to leave.

"I love you, Ianto Jones, so much" he choked, "This is me saving your life"

With that, Jack walked out of the door and towards the exit of the hospital. Tears flowed freely down his cheeks as he walked, and he didn't pay attention to anything around him. For this reason, he didn't notice Tosh walking towards him until she grabbed him by the shoulders.

"Jack, is he dead? Oh God, he's dead isn't he?" she cried,

"No, no, he's gonna be okay"

"So why are you so upset?"

"It's all my fault, Tosh, all I can do for him now is get as far away from him as possible"

"But, Jack, John's been arrested"

"What?"

"Most of your neighbours saw him push Ianto, so they arrested him for Assault with intent to kill, or something" she smiled, "Ianto's safe, and so are you!"

"Thank God!" Jack sighed, "But Ianto's not gonna want anything to do with me now"

"Jack, he loves you, and you love him, there's nothing else that matters" Tosh said, dragging Jack back into the hospital and towards Ianto's room, "You need to talk to him, and you need to do it now"

They headed into Ianto's room to find him sobbing into his hands. He looked up to see Tosh and Jack, the former smiling warmly, the latter looking at him guiltily.

"Jack...I thought you were leaving me" he said softly,

"I never wanna leave you, Yan, if you'll still have me"

Ianto broke into a smile, "Of course I will, I love you!"

"I love you too!" fresh tears rolled down Jack's cheeks as he approached Ianto's bed, leaning down to press a soft kiss to his lips. Ianto responded eagerly, deepening the kiss, causing Jack to pull back with a chuckle,

"We can't be doing that, not when you've just been hit by a car"

"What, there's a rule, is there?" Ianto asked sarcastically, wincing as he shifted in the bed.

"How are you feeling, Ianto?" Tosh asked, coming up to the side of the bed and squeezing his hand.

He sighed, "The painkillers are wearing off, I think"

Jack was immediately concerned, "Shall I go get the nurse?"

"It's ok, she comes in every so often anyway, I'll bet she'll be in here in 5 minutes"

"Are you sure? I don't want you to be in pain"

Ianto smiled up at him, "If it helps, I'm in less pain than I was 10 minutes ago"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, 10 minutes ago I thought you'd left me, and that you didn't love me, so I was in so much more pain, because I really can't bear to lose you"

"Yan, I was leaving because I thought I'd be keeping you safe. It was breaking my heart to do it, but I thought I could live with it if you were safe and happy"

"But didn't you realise I can't be happy without you?"

"It wasn't that, I was on my way out when I ran into Tosh and she told me about John"

"What about John?"

"He's been arrested" Jack smiled, stroking Ianto's cheek comfortingly, "We're not gonna have to deal with him again"

"Really? So we're safe?" Ianto asked eagerly. Jack nodded, then laughed as Ianto pulled him into a kiss. As they pulled back, Jack noticed the tears in Ianto's impossibly blue eyes.

"What is it?" Jack asked worriedly, "what's wrong?"

"Nothing at all" Ianto smiled, "These are happy tears"

Jack smiled back warmly, pressing a kiss to Ianto's cheek to show he was feeling the same way. He could not describe the relief he felt as he realised it was all gonna work out. John was out of their lives, which meant he and Ianto could get on with their relationship. The thought alone of spending potentially the rest of his life with Ianto Jones made Jack the happiest guy in the world.

* * *

This is a bit rushed because I wanted to get it done before I leave. Going to London for a week, so won't be updating for a while. Sorry guys :)


	20. Chapter 20

Ianto had spent just a week in hospital before he'd been allowed home, with the condition that he could be under constant care. Of course, there was no question of who would be looking after him. Which was how he found himself bruised and bandaged in Jack's bed, alone, much to his disappointment, while Jack made him lunch.

"Hello!" Jack poked his head around the door cheerfully, "I come bearing gifts"

"Joy" Ianto muttered sarcastically as Jack skipped in with a tray full of egg mayonnaise sandwiches, crisps and fruit.

"Oh, come on!" Jack sighed, "You know you can't resist my sandwiches"

"Oh, shut up" Ianto said irritably, pulling the duvet up over his head. Jack frowned, putting the tray down and sitting next to Ianto on the bed. He hesitantly pulled on the duvet to reveal Ianto's face,

"What's wrong, Yan?"

"I'm bored! I'm fed up of being stuck in this bed on my own with nothing to do"

"Ianto, you've been hit by a car, you can't just go out for a jog"

"I don't wanna go for a bloody jog, Jack! I just don't wanna feel like an invalid, I wanna be able to...do stuff"

"Like what?"

Ianto thought for a moment, "You" he said simply, pulling Jack towards him and kissing him heatedly. Jack responded automatically until Ianto began to run his hands up Jacks t-shirt.

"Yan, you have cracked ribs" Jack pointed out breathlessly,

"So go easy on me" Ianto winked, leaning in again. Jack was off the bed in seconds.

"Ianto, no, you'll get hurt!"

"Jack, I'm gonna die of sex deprivation!" Ianto groaned, burying his head in the pillows. Jack smiled fondly, sitting back on the edge of the bed, purposely not touching Ianto.

"As soon as you're better, I promise there'll be no stopping me, but I just can't hurt you"

Ianto sighed, "You're not gonna budge on this, are you?"

Jack shook his head, "Not until you're better"

"Fine" Ianto said childishly, "I'll just be bored then"

"Well...we could play a game"

"Unless it's naked hide and seek, I'm not interested" Ianto pouted, "Pass me my guitar, will you?"

The guitar was one of the things Jack had been instructed to bring from Ianto's flat when he'd gone to collect his clothes and other belongings. Jack had been rather pleased with this, hoping he'd get to hear Ianto's singing again, which he found almost too much of a turn on.

"Of course" Jack said sweetly, reaching for the instrument at the bottom of the bed and placing it in Ianto's hands. Ianto absent-mindedly played with the strings before looking up at Jack, who was smiling expectantly.

"What?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you gonna play something?" Jack asked excitedly, much to Ianto's amusement

"Well, yeah, any requests?"

"Anything, just...sing something"

"I wish you were this eager about other things" Ianto muttered before gently playing the opening chords.

There's no combination of words  
I could put on the back of a postcard  
No song that I could sing  
But I can try for your heart  
Our dreams, and they are made out of real things  
Like a, shoebox of photographs  
With sepia tone loving  
Love is the answer,  
At least for most of the questions in my heart  
Like why are we here? And where do we go?  
And how come it's so hard?  
It's not always easy and  
Sometimes life can be deceiving  
I'll tell you one thing it's always better when we're together  
mmm, it's always better when we're together  
Yeah, we'll look at them stars when we're together  
Well, it's always better when we're together  
Yeah, it's always better when we're together...

Jack sat in mesmerized silence, beaming as Ianto continued to play. As Ianto finished the song and looked up at Jack with a grin.

"Happy now?" Ianto asked mockingly, placing his guitar beside him on the bed.

"Insanely" Jack smirked, "And you weren't bored, were you?"

"No, but I still feel really useless" Ianto sighed, "I wanna do something!"

"Well, I suppose you could come downstairs to the sofa, but you can't do anything...vigorous"

"Spoilsport" Ianto grinned, pulling himself out of bed, wincing as he stood up. Jack wrapped an arm around Ianto's waist to steady him, causing Ianto to raise an eyebrow,

"You just can't wait to get your hands on me can you?" he teased,

"I really can't, this is killing me" he admitted,

"Hey, you're the one who's resisting my advances!"

"Yeah, because I'm concerned for your health, but it's taking all of my strength to not jump you here and now"

"Oh really?" Ianto smirked, "Well, that's interesting"

"Why?" Jack asked warily,

"Well, if it's taking all your restraint to resist me now, it shouldn't be too hard to seduce you if I really try"

"Oh shit" Jack groaned, "What are you gonna do?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out" Ianto winked, taking Ianto's hand and carefully walking downstairs to the sofa. Jack sighed almost worriedly at Ianto's mischievous grin as they sat down on the sofa together.

"So what shall we do now?" Ianto asked innocently,

"Um...we could watch a movie, if you want?"

"Fantastic" Ianto beamed, looking far too wicked for Jack's liking. Jack rolled his eyes as he got up to put a DVD into the player. They decided on a film and Jack took his seat next to Ianto, who gently moved so he was pressed against Jack's side. Jack rested an arm across the back of the sofa without thinking about it, causing Ianto to be pushed even closer as a result. Ianto smiled inwardly at this, knowing he was about to have some fun. Just as the film began, Ianto's hand moved from where it was resting across his lap to stop on Jack's knee. Jack raised an eyebrow, but continued watching the film as if nothing had happened. After a few minutes Ianto began to slowly trace patterns across Jack's thigh, inching closer to Jack's groin each time. Jack's breath hitched as he placed a hand over Ianto's to stop him in his tracks. Ianto grinned, keeping his eyes on the TV as if nothing had happened. He sighed contentedly, resting his head on Jack's shoulder. He pressed a soft kiss to Jack's neck, smiling to himself as Jack moaned softly. Taking this as a good sign, he teasingly ran his tongue up Jack's neck and resumed his attention to Jack's thigh. Jack gasped, and Ianto took full advantage, covering Jack's lips with his own. Jack responded immediately, lacing his hands in Ianto's hair and running his tongue along Ianto's lips. Ianto grinned into his lips as he deepened the kiss further, moving his hands up to rest on Jack's shoulders. Jack had Ianto's T-shirt up and over his head in seconds, leaning down to kiss his chest softly, before glancing down at the sight before him. For the first time, he noticed the bruises littering Ianto's ribs, hitting home just how hurt Ianto still was.

"I can't do this" Jack sighed, getting up of the sofa and away from Ianto

"Jack, I'm fine!" Ianto groaned, "You know you want it as much as I do"

"I don't want it enough to risk you in pain!"

"Oh, for fucks sake!" Ianto yelled, "I'm not a bloody doll, Jack, you can't break me!"

"I know, but..."

"But nothing, I can't have you treating me like I'm made of glass, because you're pissing me off!"

"Well, maybe I'll just leave you alone then!" Jack said sadly, heading upstairs to the guest bedroom. Jack had let Ianto have his room while he was recovering, and had taken to sleeping in one of the spare rooms to give Ianto space to recover. He sat on the edge and put his head in his hands. He hated having to fight with Ianto, but he hoped he at least had the moral high ground in this. He had his answer a few moments later, when Ianto knocked timidly on the bedroom door, hesitantly entering and looking at Jack pleadingly.

"Jack, I'm sorry" Ianto sighed, "I shouldn't be taking this out on you"

"It's understandable, Yan, you've been through a lot"

"Yeah, but you've done so much for me, and all I do in return is try and lure you into bed, then having a go at you when you try and look after me"

Jack laughed softly, "Come here" he patted the space on the bed next to him, which Ianto quickly sat down in,

"Ianto, you know I want nothing more than to make love to you, because, well, why wouldn't I?" Jack smiled, "I'm just trying to protect you, cause me being...hmm...shall we say a bit rough with you could really slow down your healing"

"I know, it's just it's really frustrating" Ianto murmured, "I'm almost completely healed, I go through most of the day with no pain at all, and the bruising is the only real sign that there's anything wrong. I know there's more I need to be aware of, like the cracked ribs, but it's so hard to think about that when my mind's full of rather more interesting thoughts about you"

"I'm flattered" Jack winked, "You know, just because we can't have sex for a while doesn't mean we can't do other, less energetic activities"

"Oh?" Ianto raised an eyebrow, "Such as...?"

"Just you wait and see..." 


	21. Chapter 21

Ianto sighed contentedly in his sleep, sinking further in Jack's arms. Jack smiled down at him, brushing a strand of hair from his face gently. Over the past couple of weeks that he'd spending in a different bed, the thing he'd missed the most wasn't the sex, but the simplicity of just holding Ianto close. He was making up for lost time, having woken up before Ianto, by watching him sleep soundly next to him, reaching out to stroke his face every so often. As Ianto began to stir, Jack pressed a kiss to his forehead tenderly. Ianto opened his eyes gradually, beaming up at Jack groggily.

"Hey" he murmured,

"Hi, sleepy" Jack replied, "Do you have an idea how adorable you are when you sleep?"

Ianto rolled his eyes, "Have you been watching me long?"

"How long would you call long?" Jack asked uncomfortably,

"Um...like an hour?"

"Then yeah" Jack blushed,

"I dunno whether to be flattered or freaked out" Ianto laughed as Jack looked at the pillow, trying not to meet Ianto's eyes. Ianto placed a hand under his chin to make him look at him, pressing a light kiss to his lips,

"I'd be watching you too, if I ever woke up before you" Ianto smiled, "As it is, I spend a lot of my time looking at you and wondering how I got so lucky"

"What do you mean?"

"That I get to be with you" Ianto laughed happily, "I get to spend my days with you, and...well, shag my nights away with you, and just call you mine, and that alone makes me the happiest guy in the world"

"I dunno about that" Jack beamed, "I think I'm the one who got lucky, how else could I have got this gorgeous, smart, honest and just downright amazing Welshman?"

"By being equally gorgeous and the most mesmerizing man I've ever met?" Ianto breathed, "You have no idea how much you mean to me, Jack"

"I love you so much, Yan" Jack pulled Ianto into a kiss, pouring in all of his feelings and emotions. Ianto pulled back only slightly, so their lips were still brushing together.

"I love you too" he whispered, snuggling into Jack's chest and burying his face into his shoulder. Jack kissed him on the forehead and closed his eyes, savouring the moment. They stayed in their embrace for a few minutes, until Ianto reluctantly got out of bed.

"Jack, we need to get up, I can't laze about in bed all day, so we're going out"

Jack groaned, "No! Let's stay here forever and ever" he said childishly,

Ianto smiled fondly at him, "Tempting as that sounds, I really should go down to the restaurant; Tosh has been pretty much running it singlehandedly for weeks!"

"Fine, come on then, let's get dressed" he muttered, "Never thought I'd be saying that"

"No, it's usually, 'come on then, clothes off and let's get down to business'" Ianto rolled his eyes,

"Hey! I'm not a sex-craved maniac!" Jack pouted, coming up behind Ianto and kissing his neck,

"You're proving my point by turning me on right now" Ianto smirked, turning in Jack's arms to kiss him sweetly. He then stepped back and proceeded in his search for some clothes, finding that Jack had brought practically his whole wardrobe from his flat, along with a large portion of his belongings.

"Bloody hell, Jack, with all the stuff you've brought, I may as well live here!" he laughed, then stiffened as he realised what he'd said,

"I mean, um..." he stuttered, "Well, I was only joking"

"Yan..." Jack breathed, "...why don't you?"

"What?"

"Live with me"

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah!" Jack smiled, "I mean, we've had fun these past weeks haven't we?"

"Oh yeah, recovering from being hit by a car's been a blast" Ianto rolled his eyes,

"Well, yes, but I've loved spending all this time with you, and I love the idea of waking up next to you every day" Jack sighed, "I understand if it's too soon, but..."

"Yes"

"What?"

"Yes, I'd love to live with you" Ianto beamed, "I'd like nothing more than to spend every night in your arms"

"Really?"

"Really"

Jack ran at Ianto and scooped him into his arms, lifting him off his feet and spinning him around happily. Ianto laughed, steadying himself by placing his hands on Jack's shoulders, staring into his eyes that were brimming with happiness. Ianto was lowered down into a bruising kiss, as Ianto wrapped his arms around Jack's neck to hold him as close as possible. They pulled apart, resting their foreheads together as they caught their breath.

"God, I love you" Ianto gasped, causing Jack to smirk,

"Not God, just Jack"

Ianto hit him playfully before pulling some clothes on. Jack did the same, and soon they were ready to go to the restaurant, where Tosh would be hard at work. They walked hand in hand towards the bay, chatting happily,

"I have no idea how you managed to lift me into the air like that" Ianto laughed, "I'm heavier than I look"

"Yeah I know, I think I've done my back in" Jack teased. Ianto glared playfully at him for a few moments before breaking into a grin.

"Well, if you've done your back in, it means we have to wait longer for any...vigorous activity"

"You know what; I'm feeling a lot better"

"Ah, I thought so" Ianto winked, wrapping an arm around Jack's waist in a one armed hug. Jack chuckled, draping his arm across Ianto's shoulders. They walked like this into the restaurant, where they were promptly greeted by Tosh.

"I wasn't expecting you in today!" Tosh beamed, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Tosh, seriously" Ianto sighed, "I just felt so guilty leaving you on your own for so long"

"Ianto, we've been fine, and it was hardly your fault you were hit by a car!"

"No, but..."

"Shut up Yan!" Tosh rolled her eyes, "We've had no problems, and you take as much time as you need"

"Well, I'm fine now, so I'll come back tonight if you want" Ianto felt Jack's arm wind tightly around his waist, holding him firmly at his side so he couldn't move. Ianto looked up questioningly, and saw Jack looking at him pleadingly.

"What's wrong?" he asked, as Tosh tactfully turned away.

"I don't wanna let you go" Jack murmured.

"Jack, I'm going to work, not to war!"

"Yes, but I'm nervous about you being alone...I'm scared, Yan"

"John's far away from us now, he can't hurt me"

"I know but...I've been spending practically every minute of the day with you for weeks, even working from home..."

"You usually do that anyway" Ianto pointed out, but Jack carried on as if he hadn't spoken.

"...and I've got used to having you with me, and now I don't want it to end!"

Ianto sighed, "Jack, you knew this day was coming, I have to go back to work"

"I know that, just not yet"

"This is ridiculous, I can't stay wrapped in cotton wool forever, I need to get back to normal life, and you'll see that this is for the best when you stop being so bloody childish!"

Jack glared at him, "well, excuse me for trying to look after you!"

Ianto ran a hand through his hair wearily, "You don't have to look after me all the time, Jack. I know you think you have to be some sort of dashing hero all the time, but for me, all I need is Jack. Just Jack"

Jack smiled, "I'll be anything you want me to be, Yan"

"I want you to be happy, and I want you to be with me. It's that simple"

"I think I can do that" Jack pulled Ianto into a hug, "I'm sorry I'm being such a dick about this, I just selfishly want you to be with me all the time"

Ianto laughed, "Well, I suppose I could start tomorrow instead of tonight"

"Really, you don't mind?"

"Of course I don't mind!" he grinned, "But if this is our last night of out 'holiday' if you can call it that, then you better make it worthwhile" he raised an eyebrow suggestively,

Jack chuckled, running his hands down Ianto's body to rest on his hips.

"Oh, don't worry about that, you won't forget tonight in a hurry!"

Tosh coughed uncomfortably, "Sorry, but don't you wanna check the accounts for the past few weeks?"

"Yeah, sure, Jack, will you be ok for a few minutes?"

"Of course" Jack smiled, "I'll go talk to your nice waiter over there"

Ianto grinned, "Well, actually, you haven't met him yet, I'll introduce you and then you can get talking...though if you flirt with him Tosh'll have your balls for breakfast"

"Well, that doesn't sound too bad" Jack leered, following Ianto over to a blond man laying a table.

"Andy, there's someone I'd like you to meet" Ianto gestured between the two, "Andy Davidson, Jack Harkness"

Ianto whispered, "Blender" Under his breath to Jack, causing the other man to suppress a smirk as they shook hands. Ianto left them to get acquainted and went to Tosh, leaving Andy and Jack to have polite conversation.

"So, you're the infamous Jack" Andy laughed, Infamous?" Jack raised an eyebrow

"Yeah, Tosh has filled me in about you"

"Oh?" Jack smirked, "What's she told you?"

"Basically, I know you as 'Ianto's totally hot American boyfriend'"

Jack chuckled, "I suppose that's fair description"

"Well, yeah, you're definitely Ianto's boyfriend, you're definitely American and...well I'm straight and even I can't deny you're a good looking guy"

Jack blushed slightly, "Thanks" he muttered, as Andy sniggered,

"So, how are you and Ianto? I mean, Tosh tends to squeal a lot at the mention of you, and tell me repeatedly how sweet you are, so..."

Jack grinned, "Yeah, sounds like her"

"So is it going well?"

"Oh, yeah, it's brilliant" Jack beamed, "I couldn't be happier, and I'd like to think I make him happy too"

"You do, I can tell by the way he's acting now, so carefree and relaxed"

Jack sighed, "I love him so much its insane" he looked up and smiled guiltily, "Sorry, you don't really wanna hear this"

Andy laughed, "I don't mind, I'm just glad he's happy. I've known him a long time, and I've never seen him like this"

Jack grinned as Ianto came back towards them, grabbing Jack's hand as soon as he was near enough. He pecked Jack on the lips lightly before turning to Andy, who was smirking slightly.

"So, did you two find anything interesting to talk about while I was gone?"

"Oh, yes" Jack said innocently, winking at Andy.

Ianto raised an eyebrow, "Oh?"

"You" Andy and Jack said simultaneously, while Ianto paled slightly,

"Oh God" Ianto sighed, "What were you saying?"

"Just how happy you make me" Jack chuckled, wrapping his arms around Ianto and pulling him into a hug. Ianto rolled his eyes fondly, pressing a kiss to Jack's neck as he was enveloped in his arms.

"I love you Jack" he whispered into Jack's neck, wrapping his arms firmly around Jack's waist and sighing happily. Jack placed a hand under Ianto's chin to lift his head up to his level and kissing him sweetly. Ianto's hands moved in Jack's hair immediately, Jack's arms tightening around him to pull him closer still. Andy took this as a sign to leave them to it, heading to talk to Tosh. Jack and Ianto kissed for several minutes, but the kiss wasn't passionate, and held no promise of it going any further. Instead, it was full of emotion and love, and that alone made it more powerful.

"Wow" Jack breathed as they pulled back.

"Yeah, Wow" Ianto laughed breathlessly,

"I love you too, by the way"

"I know" Ianto smiled, "Do you wanna get out of here?"

"Yeah, we need time to get ready; I'm taking you out to dinner"

"Really?"

"Yep" Jack beamed, "We haven't been on a proper date for a while"

"True" Ianto agreed, "Thank you, Jack"

Jack took him by the hand and led him out of the restaurant, watched by Tosh and Andy, who were both beaming to see their best friend so happy and so in love.

* * *

sorry it's taken me so long, but hopefully the new chapter'll be up soon.


	22. Chapter 22

"Jack, that was amazing!" Ianto smiled as they walked aimlessly around the bay, having been to one of the best restaurants Ianto'd ever eaten in.

"I aim to please" Jack winked, leaning back against the railings that looked out onto the dark water of the bay.

Ianto grinned, coming up to Jack and resting his hands on Jack's hips, effectively trapping him against the railings.

"Well, you certainly do please me" Ianto leaned in to whisper in his ear, his lips brushing against it softly,

"And I intend to please you tonight, just you wait"

Jack shivered in anticipation, causing Ianto to chuckle darkly and pull back so their lips just brushed together gently. Just as he tightened his grip on Jack and went to kiss him properly, they heard voices calling their names. Ianto immediately recognised them as Tosh and Gwen, and rolled his eyes before stepping away from Jack. Jack whimpered softly at the loss of contact, trying to clear his head as their friends got nearer. Tosh and Gwen were followed by Rhys and Owen, who were smirking at the disappointment on Jack's face.

"Hey!" Gwen beamed, "We were just about to call you, we're heading to this bar, you fancy coming?"

"Well, actually..." Jack began, only to be cut off by Ianto.

"We'd love to" Ianto replied, smirking at Jack as they all headed in the direction of the bars.

"What are we doing going to a bar when we could be having much more fun back home?" Jack asked childishly.

"Because we should be sociable and go out with our friends" Ianto sighed, "And also" he added in a whisper, "the anticipation makes the reward all the more interesting"

Jack growled, "You're evil, Ianto Jones"

"And you love it" he winked, taking Jack's hand. Jack rolled his eyes and followed the group into a nearby bar, where Owen and Ianto groaned simultaneously,

"Guys, you didn't say anything about it being karaoke night" Ianto pouted, glaring at Jack as he rolled his eyes,

"Come on, Yan, you have nothing to worry about, you know you have an amazing voice"

"Oooh, really?" Gwen said excitedly, "You're gonna have to give us a song then Ianto!"

"Thanks Jack" he muttered, "well if you're gonna make me do this I'm gonna need a drink in me first"

"Well, that can be arranged" Rhys laughed, heading to the bar to get a round of drinks. The group grabbed a table as Gwen scurried up to put her name down to sing. More drinks were consumed as Gwen sung first on her own, and then got up with Rhys to sing "Something Stupid". The rest of them cringed at the cheesiness of the song, but eventually the alcohol began to set in, and they all seemed to think they were the best singers in the world. Of course, Ianto was still relatively sober, and Jack had been drinking tap water all night.

"Right, come on, Ianto, we're all waiting!" Gwen slurred, "We wanna hear this gorgeous voice you've apparently got"

Ianto groaned, "Jack, help me out here"

"No way" Jack laughed, "I wanna hear you sing"

"But you've heard me sing!" he protested. But it was no use. With a resigned sigh, he went to put his name down, and then stepped up to the microphone.

"So is he any good?" Owen asked

Jack grinned, "Wait and see"

"I've never heard him" Tosh admitted

"Well, you're in for a hell of a good show" smiled Jack, turning back to where Ianto was about to sing. He took a deep breath before bringing his lips to the microphone and beginning to sing:

_Back off loneliness, and hello tenderness_  
_I've been waiting for your call for so long_  
_It must have been hard just to follow your soul_  
_To stick to the road that your heart wants you to go_  
_And as you slide through the door_  
_with your morals on your sleeve_  
_I think it's time for all those morals to leave_  
_So let's get down and freaky baby_  
_Let's get restless baby, come on get crazy with me_

_And I said_  
_When you're loving me, I'm loving you_  
_And I love your prowess in the things that you do_  
_and it's your flawless soul that bleeds my stone_  
_and when you're loving me, I'm loving you_  
_and that's when we've got it goin' on_

_So many people think we've got it wrong_  
_They'll try to break us but we won't play along_  
_so let's get down and dirty baby_  
_Let's get restless baby_  
_Come on get crazy with me_

_And I said_  
_When you're loving me, I'm loving you_  
_I love the prowess in the things that you do_  
_And it's your flawless soul that bleeds my stone_

Tosh and Gwen sat mesmerized as Ianto sang,

"He's just..." Tosh began

"...Amazing!" Gwen finished with a gasp,

Jack beamed, "Yeah, he is" he agreed, "And he's mine"

_And when you're loving me, I'm loving you_  
_and that's when we've got it goin' on, oh goin' on_

_I was so stranded_  
_I was lost and abandoned_  
_I needed another home_  
_And you flew in my arms_  
_You just flew right into my arms_

_And when you're loving me, I'm loving you_  
_I love the prowess in all the things that you do_  
_and it's your flawless soul that bleeds my stone_  
_and when you're loving me, I'm loving you_  
_and that's when we've got it goin' on_

_When you're loving me, I'm loving you_  
_And I love the prowess in all the things that you do_  
_And it's your flawless soul that bleeds my stone_  
_And when you're loving me, I'm loving you_  
_and that's when we've got it goin' on_

_It's your flawless soul that bleeds my stone_  
_And when you're loving me, I'm loving you_  
_and that's when we've got it goin' on_

The alcohol was adding a beautifully husky tone to his voice, and he had the entire room under his spell. As he finished the song, the room erupted into applause. Ianto smiled shyly at the audience and stepped off the stage, heading back to the group who were smiling bemusedly.

"Wow, Ianto, I had no idea you were that good" said Tosh, as Owen and Rhys clapped him on the back. He turned to Jack with a small grin.

"What did you think?"

Jack leaned in to whisper right against his lips,

"Beautiful"

Ianto smiled, closing the tiny distance between them and kissing Jack sweetly. Jack cupped his cheek softly as they kissed, and Ianto leaned into the touch. A small cough from Tosh pulled them apart, but Jack linked their hands under the table.

So, you gonna give us a song now, Jack?" Gwen asked, grinning.

Jack rolled his eyes, "do I have to?"

"Yes!" the group spoke simultaneously, much to Jack's amusement. He gave Ianto a quick wink before getting up and heading to the stage.

"Is he any good, then?" Ianto asked

"Wait and see" Gwen said slyly, repeating Jack's words from earlier on, "It'll be worth it"

Ianto rolled his eyes and turned to where Jack was up at the microphone ready to sing.

_It's a little bit funny this feeling inside_  
_I'm not one of those who can easily hide_  
_I don't have much money but boy if I did_  
_I'd buy a big house where we both could live_

_If I was a sculptor, but then again, no_  
_Or a man who makes potions in a travelling show_  
_I know it's not much but it's the best I can do_  
_My gift is my song and this one's for you_

_And you can tell everybody this is your song_  
_It may be quite simple but now that it's done_  
_I hope you don't mind_  
_I hope you don't mind that I put down in words_  
_How wonderful life is while you're in the world_

Ianto stared wide-eyed at the stage as Jack's rich melodic voice reached him, filling him with emotion and happiness. Jack's eyes were full of life and mischief as he sang, keeping his gaze locked on Ianto.

_I sat on the roof and kicked off the moss_  
_Well a few of the verses well they've got me quite cross_  
_But the sun's been quite kind while I wrote this song_  
_It's for people like you that keep it turned on_

_So excuse me forgetting but these things I do_  
_You see I've forgotten if they're green or they're blue_  
_Anyway the thing is what I really mean_  
_Yours are the sweetest eyes I've ever seen_

Jack finished the song to a round of applause, the loudest of which coming from Ianto, who stood up as Jack leapt off the stage. Jack headed straight to Ianto's arms, where he was immediately brought into a beautifully passionate kiss. The crowd cheered as Jack's arms wrapped around Ianto, crushing the younger man to his body as they kissed, but the couple ignored them. It was as if the entire world had melted away, and they had become the centre of their own universe. As they pulled apart and joined the group again, Gwen smiled triumphantly at the pair,

"Told you it'd be worth the wait" she winked at Ianto,

"It certainly was" Ianto turned to Jack, "You never told me you could sing"

Jack shrugged, "I'm full of surprises"

"Oh I know" Ianto smirked, "How about you show me just how surprising you can be"

As he spoke, his hand was slowly making his way up Jack's thigh. Jack's breath hitched, and he stood up quickly.

"Right, um, we're gonna get going, if you don't mind...it's getting late"

"That's the crappest excuse I've ever heard!" Owen laughed,

Jack grinned, "Fine, we're gonna go so Ianto can have his wicked way with me, unless you'd rather me take him right here and now"

"Uh, no thanks" Rhys chuckled, "See you soon guys"

"Yep, have fun" Tosh smiled,

"Don't do anything I wouldn't" Gwen giggled,

"Well, that gives us a lot of leeway then" Jack retorted with a wink, leading Ianto out of the bar and into the moonlit bay. They wandered home hand in hand in comfortable silence, where they stopped just outside the door, turning to look up at the stars.

"Wouldn't it be amazing to go up there?" Ianto sighed dreamily,

"I don't know" Jack shrugged, "I wouldn't give this up, even to walk among the stars"

Ianto smiled, "I'd walk among them with you"

Jack looked at him, grinning, "You're such a sap" he nudged him playfully, "But I don't need to walk among the stars with you...you're my world, Ianto, and that's not changing anytime soon"

Ianto pulled him into a soft kiss before leading him into the house, where they would continue their romantic evening, safe in the thought that there would be many more romantic evenings to come...if only there wasn't someone out there with a very different plan...


	23. Chapter 23

Ianto hummed quietly to the radio as he packed up his boxes, grinning to himself. He was sorting out his flat to move all his stuff over to Jack's house, and he really couldn't be happier. Jack would be joining him later to help with the boxes, but right now he was alone, cheerily organising everything. He'd always been slightly OCD when it came to having things in their proper place, and so all his boxes were properly labelled to perfection. As he began to sing along softly to one of his favourite songs came on the radio, the phone began to ring. Deciding it was most probably Jack, he turned the radio down a little before picking up.

"Hello?"

"Ianto?"

"Lisa?" Ianto asked, confused. She hadn't rung his house phone in a long time, not since...no; he wasn't going down that road again.

"Is everything ok?"

"Yeah everything's fine, I was wondering..." she sounded nervous, "could I come and see you for a while? I just need someone to talk to"

"Um...well, sure, but...don't take this the wrong way, but why me?" he asked,

"Ianto, you mean a lot to me, you're my friend. I just want a chat"

"Ok, come up whenever, I'll have the kettle on ready" he remembered that Lisa had never had much time for coffee, a fact that had always put Ianto in a state of disbelief.

"Thanks Ianto, I'll see you soon"

"Alright then, Bye Lisa"

"Bye"

Ianto hung up and went back to his packing, not thinking too much into his situation with Lisa. It seemed odd, he'd admit, that she was calling him like this after they hadn't really spoken all that much for months, but it wasn't as if she'd have any hidden motives, right?

He didn't have much time to dwell on this thought, as there was a knock at the door. With a sigh he moved to answer it, opening the door to reveal Lisa standing there, smiling slightly nervously up at him.

"Hey, Lisa, come on in"

"Thanks" she stepped past him into the living room, "Wow, that's a lot of boxes"

"Yeah, well, I'm moving" Ianto chuckled, "You just forget how much stuff you have until it's time to deal with it all" he sank wearily onto the sofa. Lisa laughed, sitting next to him and looking at him intently.

"What?" he asked,

"Nothing, just...okay, there's a reason I came to see you"

"I thought there might be" Ianto said, "What's wrong?"

"Yan, I miss you"

"What do you mean?"

"I made a mistake, giving up on us, just because you were..." Lisa struggled with her words, "anyway, I wanna give it another try"

Ianto sighed, "Lisa, I'm sorry, really I am, but...I'm just not in that place anymore, we can't just turn back time"

"Well, why can't we?" she asked, "You can't deny we were good together"

"We were" Ianto admitted, "In the beginning, before I told you about me liking men, and then...well you know what happened"

"I've apologised for that so many times"

"I know, but that's not the point" he ran a hand through his hair, "I'm with someone else, and I'm happy"

"What?" she gasped, "Who is she, or...he?"

"You've met him; we came to your restaurant"

"Oh? I didn't know it was serious with that guy, I thought it was just the one date"

"No, it's serious; I'm moving in with him, hence the boxes"

"God, Yan, you could've told me!"

"Well we haven't spoken in a while, that's why I was surprised you called"

"I called because I'm still in love with you, and I know deep down you must still feel something for me too"

Ianto stood up and paced around the room, "Lisa, you can't just spring this on me! I moved on, and I thought you did too, and know it's months down the line and I'm in a serious relationship, I actually love him, so much, and...I think you need to go"

"Ianto, I..."

"Please just go!"

Lisa nodded and headed for the door, "I'm sorry"

Ianto followed her out to the hallway, "Me too, I don't mean to be harsh, I just can't do this right now"

"I know" Suddenly, Lisa heard footsteps coming up the hallway, and an American voice chatting loudly, obviously on the phone. In a moment of selfishness, she grabbed Ianto's face in her hands, pushed him up against the wall, and covered his lips with her own. Ianto, shocked at the action, didn't react, letting himself be pinned to the wall for a few seconds before he managed to sort himself out and try to get her off.

Meanwhile, Jack hung up and came round the corner and stopped with a gasp. All he could see was Ianto locked in a seemingly passionate embrace with Lisa, the woman who had broken his heart. He felt tears pricking his eyes as he turned on his heel and stalked out of the building, unknowingly dropping his phone on the way out.

Ianto succeeded in pushing Lisa off him, glaring at her accusingly,

"What the fuck, Lisa?" he yelled, "I'm with Jack, and I love him!"

"Well, I wouldn't be so sure about that" she said spitefully, "seeing as he just saw you kissing me"

Ianto's eyes widened, "you wouldn't!" seeing her face, it was pretty clear that she would,

"You bitch! If you've ruined this for me, I swear..." he broke off running to the lift, hoping to catch Jack on the way out. He stopped to catch his breath, but Jack was nowhere in sight. He looked down and picked up a phone he recognised as Jack's, sighing in defeat. Tears rolled down his face as he faced the fact that he may have lost Jack forever. But he was determined not to let that happen. He rushed back up to his flat and grabbed his keys, completely ignoring Lisa, and headed out in the direction of Jack's house. Lisa rushed to catch him,

"Ianto, where are you going?" she asked breathlessly,

"Where do you fucking think?" he yelled, refusing to look at her.

"I'm sorry Yan!" Lisa cried, "But...don't you see, we would've been together if...that hadn't happened"

"But it did happen, we broke up, I moved on, I feel in love...and now I might've lost it all because of your little stunt, Lisa!"

He stalked off, leaving her behind, and headed to Jack's, where he hammered loudly on the door. Jack opened it, tears streaming down his face, his eyes widening as he saw who it was.

"Ianto, why are you here?" he asked wearily,

"To explain. That wasn't what..."

"Wasn't what it looked like?" Jack scoffed, "You're not seriously giving me that excuse!"

"It's not an excuse. I'm telling you what happened"

"I know what I saw! You were kissing your ex-girlfriend"

"She pinned me against the wall and did it because she knew you would see. I didn't have time to react"

"And why would she do that?"

"Because apparently she still loves me" Ianto sighed, "I promise you, Jack, I would never do that to you"

"How can I be sure of that? She's your ex, you're bound to still feel something for her"

"I love you" Ianto said simply. Jack sighed sadly,

"You have a lot of history with her, and I get that" he said, "So if it was gonna be anybody, it'd be her" he started to close the door, "You're not a cheater, Yan, and I know that, so for you to do this she must be special. She's a lucky girl to have you, and I hope you're happy"

"Jack, I love you, and I want to be with you" Ianto pleaded, tears flowing freely down his face, "You have to believe me"

"I love you too, but I've just seen you kissing another woman!"

"She kissed me, and as soon as it started, I stopped it" Ianto assured him, "Please, Jack"

"I need time to think, to clear my head" Jack ran a hand through his hair, "Just...I'll call you, ok?"

"But Jack..."

"I'll call you" he said firmly, slamming the door. Ianto collapsed against the door in tears, putting his head in his hands as he reached the floor. Jack had become his life, and he couldn't imagine living without him. If Jack couldn't forgive him for this, and learn to trust him again, Ianto didn't know what he would do.


End file.
